conversation filler
/ˌkɒnvəˈseɪʃən ˈfɪlər/
CommonSomething said mainly to keep a conversation going, not because it is interesting or meaningful.
Can be used neutrally or critically. Sometimes people use it to describe their own habit self-deprecatingly.
Real-world examples3 examples
| # | Example | What it means | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | i say 'that's so crazy' as a conversation filler literally 40 times a day | They use the phrase reflexively without any actual reaction. | tiktok, 2024 |
| 02 | half of what he says in meetings is just conversation filler. sounds busy but says nothing. | The person uses empty phrases to appear engaged without contributing anything. | reddit, 2023 |
| 03 | 'anyway' is my go-to conversation filler when i have no idea what to say next | They use 'anyway' to escape conversations when they run out of things to add. | x, 2024 |
Use it when
- Someone is clearly just buying time in a conversation with empty phrases.
- Describing the habit of saying 'totally' or 'for sure' constantly without meaning it.
- Reflecting on your own tendency to fill silences with noise.
Do not use it when
- You mean verbal tics like 'um' or 'uh' (those are speech disfluencies, not fillers).
- You mean filler content on social media.Use “filler content” instead.
Origin and context
Adapted from linguistics where 'filler' describes speech elements that add no informational content. Common casual use emerged with social anxiety discourse online.
- First seen
- 2010s
- Confidence
- low
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https://slang.fyi/conversation-fillerUpdated: 2026-08-29License: CC BY 4.0