ENGLISH DICTIONARY

Palaver

/pəˈlɑː.və(ɹ)/ · noun

Meaning

(Africa) A village council meeting..

Definitions by Sense

(Africa) A village council meeting.
(Canada, US, archaic in Britain) Talk, especially unnecessary talk; chatter. [from 18th c.]
(British) Mentally draining activity, either physical or fuss.
A meeting at which there is much talk; a debate; a moot.
(informal) Disagreement.
Talk intended to deceive. [from 19th c.]
(intransitive) To discuss with much talk.
(transitive) To flatter.

Example Sentences

Here we remained four days, on account of a palaver which was held on the following occasion.

That night the village warriors held a big palaver to celebrate their victories, and to choose a new chief.

Frances pulled his hair heartily, and then went and seated herself on her husband’s knee, and there they were, like two babies, kissing and talking nonsense by the hour—foolish palaver that we should be ashamed of.

These remarks were received with a differing demonstration: some of the company declaring that if the Dutchman cared to come round and smoke a pipe they would be glad to see him—perhaps he'd show where the thumbscrews had been put on; others being strongly of the opinion that they didn't want any more advice—they had already had advice enough to turn a donkey's stomach. What they wanted was to put forth their might without any more palaver; to do something, or for some one; to go out somewhere and smash something, on the spot—why not?—that very night.

Knowing full well the right time and the wrong time for a palaver of regret and disavowal, this battalion struggled in the desperation of despair.

Some of the palavers could take half a day.

What a palaver!

What's the good of going through all this palaver of giving very small sums to very obscure charities?

Word Forms

palavers
palavering
palavered

Synonyms for palaver

Related Words

When Should You Use Palaver?

Use palaver when its meaning, tone and grammar fit the full sentence. A synonym is not always a direct replacement.

Practice This Word

Frequently Asked Questions

What does palaver mean?

Palaver means (Africa) A village council meeting..

What is a synonym for palaver?

Common synonyms include hot air, babble, bavardage, bibble-babble.

What is the opposite of palaver?

The opposite depends on the specific sense.

How do you use palaver in a sentence?

Here we remained four days, on account of a palaver which was held on the following occasion.

Sources & Attribution

FreeDictionaryAPI.com / Wiktionary · Original source · CC BY-SA 4.0

Dictionary data is provided by FreeDictionaryAPI.com and sourced from Wiktionary under its stated license.

ENGLISH DICTIONARY

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Definitions by Sense

(Africa) A village council meeting.

(Canada, US, archaic in Britain) Talk, especially unnecessary talk; chatter. [from 18th c.]

(British) Mentally draining activity, either physical or fuss.

A meeting at which there is much talk; a debate; a moot.

(informal) Disagreement.

Talk intended to deceive. [from 19th c.]

(intransitive) To discuss with much talk.

(transitive) To flatter.

Example Sentences

Here we remained four days, on account of a palaver which was held on the following occasion.

That night the village warriors held a big palaver to celebrate their victories, and to choose a new chief.

Frances pulled his hair heartily, and then went and seated herself on her husband’s knee, and there they were, like two babies, kissing and talking nonsense by the hour—foolish palaver that we should be ashamed of.

These remarks were received with a differing demonstration: some of the company declaring that if the Dutchman cared to come round and smoke a pipe they would be glad to see him—perhaps he'd show where the thumbscrews had been put on; others being strongly of the opinion that they didn't want any more advice—they had already had advice enough to turn a donkey's stomach. What they wanted was to put forth their might without any more palaver; to do something, or for some one; to go out somewhere and smash something, on the spot—why not?—that very night.

Knowing full well the right time and the wrong time for a palaver of regret and disavowal, this battalion struggled in the desperation of despair.

Some of the palavers could take half a day.

What a palaver!

What's the good of going through all this palaver of giving very small sums to very obscure charities?

Frequently Asked Questions

What does palaver mean?

Palaver means (Africa) A village council meeting..

What is a synonym for palaver?

Common synonyms include hot air, babble, bavardage, bibble-babble.

What is the opposite of palaver?

The opposite depends on the specific sense.

How do you use palaver in a sentence?

Here we remained four days, on account of a palaver which was held on the following occasion.

Sources & Attribution

FreeDictionaryAPI.com / Wiktionary · Original source · CC BY-SA 4.0

Dictionary data is provided by FreeDictionaryAPI.com and sourced from Wiktionary under its stated license.