Small talk is meaningless conversation in terms of content，but is often seen as socially important in certain situations，or context．In many English-speaking countries，it can be viewed as rude or unfriendly not to make small talk.
Discussing the weather with people who you don’t really know is an example of small talk that many of us are very familiar with on a daily basis．We may chat about the weather with the cashier at the supermarket or with the attendant at the gas station．Small talk may also be related to the situation such as waiting in line．People in the line may comment to others about how slow it is in the post office or bank that day，for instance．We also engage in small talk with people we may see every day but don’t really know such as those we share the elevator with in our office building．
Small talk is common at parties when guests may know the host but not each other．It is considered rude not to mingle and speak with other guests at social functions，so small talk can break the ice and get guests chatting．Compliments(赞美)may be a type of small talk such as one woman at party complimenting another on her dress．
Some people like small talk because they find silence uncomfortable and／or they enjoy communicating verbally．Others enjoy meeting new people and use small talk to start conversations. When making small talk，especially with strangers or those you don’t know very well，it’s important to observe certain socially acceptable conventions．First，small talk should be general and not personal or about controversial topics. Second，while compliments are acceptable，they shouldn't refer to the person’s body or sound like a pick-up line．
What do people usually talk about in small talk?

A．Light topics．	B．Personal topics．
C． Meaningless things.	D．Controversial affairs．

Who do we usually have small talk with?

A．Close friends．	B．People we don’t really know．
C．Family members．	D．Our seniors．

At parties，it’s considered rude to          ．

A．speak to one guest only and not speak with other guests

B．speak to several guests at the same time

C．compliment a woman on her dress

D．have small talk with the host

We can infer from the last paragraph that           ．

A．compliments are the most acceptable in small talk

B．we should refer to a person’s body when complimenting in order to sound sincere

C．there are some rules in making small talk

D．some people use small talk to make new friends

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