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[This question](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/q/30093/1330) and [this
other one](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/q/57428/1330) explain the
differences between 会{かい}話{わ} and other words related to "conversation," but
they don't cover 対{たい}談{だん}, which I've also learned has the same meaning.

Seen as both 会話 and 対談 are defined as conversation, dialogue, and talk, what
is the difference between them? When should I use one over the other?
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2023-01-09T20:37:21.797
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question
word-choice nuances
What's the difference between 会話 and 対談?
対談 means a discussion between two people which is usually set up as a special
occasion and whose topic is set in advance. You can think of something like
panel discussion (without panels). 議論 is a general term for discussion, and
can be used for discussion in ordinary meetings, for example and there is no
implication on the number of people. In this sense, 対談=議論+eventness+two
people.

A discussion event involving **three** people is called
[鼎談{ていだん}](https://dictionary.goo.ne.jp/word/%E9%BC%8E%E8%AB%87/#jn-150192)
(after a three-leged pot [鼎{かなえ}](https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E9%BC%8E)). A
standard word for panel discussion is 座談{ざだん}(会{かい})

会話 is a general term referring to any type of conversation that happens in
daily life.

* * *

会談{かいだん} is a word similar to 対談. I'm not so sure how they are distinguished,
but my impression is that 会談 is more of a talk between politicians with less
specific topics.
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answer
対談, as least in modern Japanese, almost specifically refers to a talk session
between two celebrities in the format of a talk show or a (mutual) interview.
The topic is generally casual and not very socially important (e.g., their
personal work style or motto), and hot debating is not intended. In a typical
対談, the two celebrities talk with each other, sometimes like an interviewer
and sometimes like an interviewee. 対談 is a very common format of a magazine
article.

Here is a typical 対談, one between a Nobel Prize winner and a shogi (Japanese
chess) champion: [ノーベル賞学者と史上最年少四冠のスペシャル対談!!](https://news.kodansha.co.jp/9058)

The two people selected for a 対談 are typically unrelated in their everyday
work. Sometimes, there is an unnamed third person who plays the role of a host
and provides various topics, but the main actors are always the two
celebrities. If one of the two is an unknown writer, it is simply called an
インタビュー. If three or more celebrities are present, it is usually called a 座談会.
When politicians and such engage in serious discussion, it is called a 会談.

会話 is just "conversation"; this is something ordinary people do every day.
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answer