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Glite Dictionary
to talk someone under the table

to talk someone under the table

8.6
To talk longer and more skillfully so the other person cannot answer
  • idiom
  • Informal
translation icon : hablar más que alguien
  • No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't talk his boss under the table during the meeting.

Examples

  • She could talk someone under the table when it came to politics.

  • They both enjoy debating, but only Maria can talk people under the table every time.

  • Don't try to talk him under the table!

  • She can easily talk you under the table.

  • During the debate, she managed to talk her opponent under the table with her well-researched arguments.

  • He has a unique ability to talk anyone under the table, impressing everyone with his captivating stories.

  • At the party, she kept talking him under the table, sharing fascinating anecdotes that everyone enjoyed.

Synonyms

to overtalk
vsto talk someone under the table
1 6.4

To talk so much that you stop others from speaking

prefers skilled persuasion and length rather than mere quantity to win conversation
to talk under the table
vsto talk someone under the table
  • Informal
9.6

To speak more and make others stop talking

relies on skill and persuasion to overwhelm or outsmart the other speaker

How Dominant

to overtalk
1 6.4
to talk someone under the table
  • Informal
8.6
to outtalk
1 7.0
to talk
∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

talk someone under the table infinitive
talked someone under the table past
talked someone under the table past participle
talking someone under the table present participle
talks someone under the table third person singular

Morphology

talk + someone + under + the + table

The meaning 'to outtalk or overwhelm someone' is not directly derivable from the literal parts: 'under the table' is a spatial phrase that does not transparently signal conversational dominance. Although it parallels constructions like 'drink someone under the table', that metaphorical pattern is idiomatic and would not be predictable to a B1 learner who only knows the individual words.

Etymology

Talk someone under the table may come from the old saying drink someone under the table. The image is of one person talking so much or so well that the other is left unable to answer, so the phrase means 'to outtalk or overwhelm someone'.