talk talk

English translation: serious in-depth discussion

GLOSSARY ENTRY (DERIVED FROM QUESTION BELOW)

English term or phrase:	talk talk
Selected answer:	serious in-depth discussion
Entered by:	jerrie

09:45 Jan 24, 2004

English language (monolingual) [Non-PRO]

English term or phrase: talk talk

"Max, I want to talk to you..."
I looked at the remote and at least the power button, which was red, was obviouse, so I turned of the television.
Something flashed behind his eyes. Annoyance?
He said, "We have to talk?"
"I don't want to talk talk," I said. "I just wan to know what's going on."

vkan

placing a lot of significance on 'talk'

Explanation:
I don't want a heavy duty, in depth discussion, I just want to talk (generally, simply), I just want to know what's going on.

a talk talk - is more than just a talk (it's a talk to the power of 2!). It would be the talk to end all talks..full analysis of the relationship, where it's going, should it continue etc.

Save that one for later

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Note added at 2004-01-24 09:59:38 (GMT)
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I don\'t want to \"talk\" talk..I just want to know what\'s going on.

If this was visualised the narrator might even do the inverted commas with her fingers.

Selected response from:

jerrie
United Kingdom
Local time: 23:32

Grading comment

4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer

SUMMARY OF ALL EXPLANATIONS PROVIDED

4 +14

placing a lot of significance on 'talk'

jerrie

4 +2

talk talk to talk for the sake of talking but not for understanding

Jean-Luc Dumont

I don't want beating about the bush

Empty Whiskey Glass

4 +1

I don't want to chitchat

sarahl (X)

All I want to know....

Kathrin.B

you don't really want a conversation

Adela Van Gils

serious but meaningless dialogue

nyamuk

I don't want to break up with you. I just want to know what's going on.

Refugio

discussion

Iolanta Vlaykova Paneva

Answers

5 mins confidence:

I don't want beating about the bush

Explanation:
I don't want beating about the bush, I just want to know what's going on.

Empty Whiskey Glass
Local time: 01:32
Native speaker of:

Bulgarian
PRO pts in pair: 61

7 mins confidence:

All I want to know....

Explanation:
"All I want to know is what's going on. Well, if you mean "Let's talk and tackle the problem.", and you tell me thr truth, I say "Yes, let's talk." Otherwise I say NO, I don't wanna talk."

If I understand it well.

HTH

Kathrin.B
Local time: 00:32
Native speaker of:

Hungarian

8 mins confidence:

peer agreement (net): +14

placing a lot of significance on 'talk'

jerrie
United Kingdom
Local time: 23:32
Native speaker of:

English
PRO pts in pair: 773

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)

agree

Mark Cole

12 mins

agree

Armorel Young

13 mins

agree

Charlie Bavington: "serious discussion" is implied meaning of 'talk talk' here, as in prev line 'we have to talk?' = 'you would like a discussion about our relationship?'

14 mins

agree

Alex Zelkind (X)

17 mins

-> Thanks

agree

Chris Rowson (X): And Max has interpreted turning off the television (!!!) as a further sign that she wants a "serious" talk. But no, she just wants to "know what´s going on". Though maybe he should still be worried ...

26 mins

-> Us ladies like a good "talk" talk... especially when the footie is on ;- ))

agree

Jonathan Spector

2 hrs

agree

Gordon Darroch (X)

2 hrs

-> Thanks

agree

David Russi

3 hrs

agree

Iolanta Vlaykova Paneva

3 hrs

agree

Michele Johnson: Yes. Just figured out that footie is supposed to be footba.. er, soccer? :)

4 hrs

-> Sorry...yes, footba...soccer!

agree

Rajan Chopra

4 hrs

agree

RHELLER: yes, no heavy analysis; a sentence starting with "we have to talk" is a dead giveaway (usually said by a woman :-)

5 hrs

neutral

Jean-Luc Dumont: I understand the contrary - I dont want bs or a superficial chat I want to understand exactly what is happenning - I want a serious talk not a talk talk for the sake of talking meaninglessly

8 hrs

agree

Alexandra Tussing

9 hrs

disagree

melayujati: talking with no end; just for the sake of talking

12 hrs

agree

vixen

1 day 23 hrs

agree

Rajiv Arora

5 days

2 hrs confidence:

you don't really want a conversation

Explanation:
You only want to say something to me/not exchange ideas.

Adela Van Gils
Netherlands
Local time: 00:32
Native speaker of:

Dutch,

English

3 hrs confidence:

discussion

Explanation:
I don't really want a discussion......

Iolanta Vlaykova Paneva
Canada
Local time: 18:32
Native speaker of: Bulgarian
PRO pts in pair: 12

5 hrs confidence:

serious but meaningless dialogue

Explanation:
Several meanings.

It depends on who the speakers are and how the words are uttered. In the first case I pretty much agree with Jerri except the bit about talk talk meaning talk to the power of two. I would say it means serious but meaningless were both parties are posturing and not expressing what they feel.

talk, talk
reduplication with falling intonation and a partial stop.
"(v)", (v) = really (v)
I didn't want to "kill him", kill him ~ I didn't want to really kill him.
I have never heard this used without negation.

If that is what is meant hear its like saying 'I don't want to talk with a capitol T' or 'I don't want to "talk" talk'

I think that the purpose of the reduplication is not emphasise the verb but to isolate it make it more abstract and less real. So in this case it would mean not having a serious discussion which is meaningless because its just an exchange of codified language.

talk-talk
reduplication with rising intonation or sharp consonant ending.
I thought this was exclusively Manglish (English slang spoken in Malaysia) but it is used in Singapore, and I have heard South Asians not from SE Asia say this.

I think people might say that the Manglish and Singlish expression talk-talk mean to talk BS, but the way I like to think of it is as meaning 'hiding behind words.'

To give an example :
In Indian programmer was having trouble keeping up with a project schedule, so he was called up by the project manager and said 'come along we have to get a talk-talk from the account manager.

In this case talk-talk means a reprimand, but I often hear guys refer to talk-talk[ing] with their partners. We could say this means BS but what it really means is saying the things you are supposed to say and maybe not saying what you mean, or hiding behind words.

nyamuk
United States
Local time: 16:32
Native speaker of:

English
PRO pts in pair: 58

7 hrs confidence:

I don't want to break up with you. I just want to know what's going on.

Explanation:
In US parlance, the expression "We have to talk" or "We need to talk" often signals the imminent breakup of a relationship (I have often heard it used in that sense by comedians). So she is saying, I don't want to talk in that sense, but simply to get information.

Refugio
Local time: 15:32
Native speaker of:

English
PRO pts in pair: 485

9 hrs confidence:

peer agreement (net): +1

I don't want to chitchat

Explanation:
I want a serious discussion.

sarahl (X)
Local time: 15:32
Native speaker of:

French
PRO pts in pair: 51

9 hrs confidence:

peer agreement (net): +2

talk talk to talk for the sake of talking but not for understanding

Explanation:
I understand the contrary - I dont want bs or a superficial chat I want to understand exactly what is happening - I want a serious talk not a talk talk for the sake of talking meaninglessly - talk talk to talk for talking but not for understanding

It is like a cliché - in movies or on tv - when in a couple it starts witn "we have to talk" it means one will give some phony or one-sided excused to split / break-up without really addressing the real problem

"we have to talk" introduces often a pretext to break up not a discussion

the person does not want that but wants an objective discussion to understand what's going on or what could be the problem

Jean-Luc Dumont
France
Local time: 00:32
Native speaker of: French
PRO pts in pair: 24

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English translation: serious in-depth discussion

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