Meaning & use
sidebar conversation
Last updated
Meanings
nouncountable
A short private talk held to one side while a larger meeting or discussion is going on.
Grammar: Countable: you can have one sidebar conversation or several sidebar conversations.
Patterns
- have a sidebar conversation with someone
- a sidebar conversation about something
- during a sidebar conversation
The chair paused the meeting while two managers had a sidebar conversation by the window.
I missed part of the presentation because a colleague started a sidebar conversation with me.
She raised the budget question again in a sidebar conversation after everyone else had left.
nouncountableinformal
A brief private exchange between two people in a group setting, often online, that others cannot hear or see.
Grammar: Often used with 'private' or 'quick'; the plural form refers to several such exchanges.
Patterns
- a quick sidebar conversation
- exchange sidebar conversations
- in a sidebar conversation
We kept the chat open and had a quick sidebar conversation while the speaker talked.
Please avoid sidebar conversations in the back channel; put your questions in the main thread.
He sent me a sidebar conversation message to warn me about the change in plan.
Word forms
| plural | sidebar conversations |
|---|
Common combinations
- have a sidebar conversation
- Let's have a sidebar conversation about this after the call.
- a quick sidebar conversation
- A quick sidebar conversation cleared up the confusion.
- a private sidebar conversation
- They stepped outside for a private sidebar conversation.
- during a sidebar conversation
- I learned the news during a sidebar conversation at lunch.
- sidebar conversation about the budget
- A sidebar conversation about the budget turned into a long argument.
Synonyms and how they differ
- aside
- An 'aside' is a remark made to one side, usually spoken aloud and brief; a sidebar conversation is a fuller exchange between two people.
- private word
- 'A private word' focuses on the secrecy and is common in British English; 'sidebar conversation' stresses that it happens alongside a main discussion.
- huddle
- A 'huddle' is a small group gathering, often in sports or business; a sidebar conversation usually involves just two people.
Word family
- sidebar noun
- A short note or extra item placed beside the main text, or a narrow column at the side of a page.
Commonly confused: sidebar conversation or side conversation? sidebar conversation or small talk?
sidebar conversation vs side conversation
'Side conversation' is also used and means almost the same thing, but it is less fixed as a term and can refer to any talk happening beside the main one.
sidebar conversation vs small talk
'Small talk' is light social chat about unimportant topics; a sidebar conversation can be serious and work-related.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'sidebar conversation' correctly?
Choose one answer.
'A sidebar conversation' is a countable noun phrase, so it needs the article 'a' and the preposition 'about' for the topic. Option 2 uses the wrong preposition, option 3 drops the article, and option 4 mixes 'a' with a plural noun.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “sidebar conversation”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.