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Palaver
01
trivial or meaningless talk
Examples
The meeting was filled with palaver and no real decisions were made.
He dismissed their complaints as mere palaver.
02
smooth talk intended to persuade or influence someone
Examples
He won their consent with a little palaver.
The salesman used palaver to convince the customer to buy the expensive model.
03
a lot of unnecessary effort, trouble, or fuss over something trivial
Dialect
British
British
InformalExamples
The palaver of explaining every step bored the audience quickly.
Fixing the broken faucet turned into a palaver with all the wrong tools.
to palaver
01
to hold a prolonged discussion, often between people of different backgrounds or parties, usually to resolve a matter
Examples
Tribal leaders palavered to settle disputes peacefully.
Negotiators palavered across the table to find common ground.
02
to influence or persuade someone gently, often using flattery or coaxing
Examples
She palavered the child into taking his medicine.
He palavered the guards with compliments to gain entry.
03
to aimlessly talk a lot
Examples
Instead of getting straight to the point, he tends to palaver endlessly, causing meetings to drag on.
Whenever they get together, they can palaver for hours about anything and everything.
