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How can I tell someone that I was just making the conversation long for fun? I am looking for some American idiom to express it.

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Most people don't do it for fun. – Daniel δ Jul 22 '11 at 13:12
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@drm65 - You have never had a conversation that you found so stimulating you looked for additional things to talk about? Or just talked with a member of the opposite sex simply because you enjoyed doing so? – Chad Jul 22 '11 at 18:21
Okay, okay, I give up! :) – Daniel δ Jul 22 '11 at 18:22

7 Answers

up vote 18 down vote

If you are pretending not to understand or misunderstand for a little fun at the expense of the other person that would be Teasing.

If you are just talking to someone with mindless chatter that is often refered to as Babbling.

If you are just talking about things that interest one or both of you then it is often referred to as Chitchat.

If it is a mutual session of playful verbal jabs at each other it can be referred to as Banter

And talking with a member of the preferred sex, for fun is often called Flirting.

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Nice. Looks like the answer – user395881 Jul 22 '11 at 15:44
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Indeed, nice list. One more: if someone is making a funny story deliberately longer they are "telling a shaggy dog story". en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shaggy_dog_story – Eric Lippert Jul 22 '11 at 18:10
up vote 13 down vote

I would say that one is "drawing out" a conversation. That certainly has a meaning of "prolonging," and since it is voluntary, the implication it is at the pleasure of the actor.

Another word I would use to describe this phenomenon is "lingering."

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Thanks. I guess "drawing out"/"lingering" the conversation for fun looks better. – user395881 Jul 22 '11 at 13:44
@user395881: will you upvote this answer? – Tom Au Jul 22 '11 at 13:50
@Tom: I will! :) – Daniel δ Jul 22 '11 at 14:28
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"linger" is an intransitive verb, not taking an object - you "linger" (i.e. stay) you do not "linger the conversation". – DJClayworth Jul 22 '11 at 18:41
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@djclayworth: Fair enough. But the CONVERSATION can linger. I described this as a "phenomenon." – Tom Au Jul 22 '11 at 18:48
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up vote 9 down vote

You could say I/we were just shooting the breeze or I/we were just chewing the fat.

These are idioms that imply an idle conversation which has no purpose other than entertainment or occupying time.

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Nice answer, Colin. – user395881 Jul 26 '11 at 14:55
up vote 2 down vote

I could have been more succinct, but I wanted a prolix conversation for fun.

prolix

1 : unduly prolonged or drawn out : too long

2 : marked by or using an excess of words

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Well, if you need a list of all the words meaning wordy... – Daniel δ Jul 22 '11 at 13:15
The adjective prolix has an unfavorable connotation, so it would not be used when a conversation is prolonged for enjoyment. – oosterwal Jul 22 '11 at 18:41
up vote 1 down vote

Huh, good question. If you're looking for a response to a question like "Why is this conversation so long," witty options may include "It's the journey, not the destination," "If not this conversation, then which?" or "Good things come to those who wait." something playful/humorous should render the guy into a more docile state.

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None of these are idioms, though. I don't know if there are any. – Daniel δ Jul 22 '11 at 13:14
up vote 1 down vote

I would call it, "spinning out" the conversation; or in the past tense, "The conversation was drawn out" works better

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up vote 0 down vote

If you're referring to a narrative joke, it's known as a Shaggy Dog Story. You can find concrete media examples of a Shaggy Dog Story here.

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