Green’s Dictionary of Slang

a conversation, an argument.

1701		Dial. Marphorio and Pasquin 8: I’ll [...] enter into a Confab with you [OED].
1778		Mme D’Arblay Diary and Letters (1904) I 76: We had a very nice confab about various books.
1794		‘Peter Pindar’ ‘Subjects for Painters’ Works (1794) II 261: For lo, with many a King and many a Queen, in close confab the gentleman is seen.
1812		Spirit of Irish Wit 35: [W]ith whom he entered into a very familiar con-fab.
1821–6		‘Bill Truck’ Man o’ War’s Man (1843) 359: In this select confab, you may be sure our intended cruise to the Nore was not forgotten.
1837		‘Nights At Sea’ in Bentley’s Misc. May 480: I’ll bring up for a few hours at his cottage, and have a bit of a confab consarning ould times.
1844		‘Jonathan Slick’ High Life in N.Y. II 190: He and I had a purty considerable confab.
1847		‘Epistle from Joe Muggins’s Dog’ in Era (London) 15 Aug. 3/3: I toddled up early, and had a confab with my friend, the yard-dog.
1850		F.E. Smedley Frank Fairlegh (1878) 224: Mr. Harry [...] called Mr. Archer into his room, and they had a confab.
1850		Life in Boston & N.Y. (Boston, MA) 10 Aug. n.p.: They [...] held a long confab with that interesting youth.
1851		Bell’s Life in Sydney 19 Apr. 3/3: No sooner was this mysterious confab concluded, than Police Constable Moxon stepped into the box.
1859		G.A. Sala Twice Round the Clock 160: Tremendous bank-partners [...] have a short but solemn confab with confidential subordinates relative to coming transactions.
1865		Leaves from Diary of Celebrated Burglar 13/1: While in confab about our biz, who should we meet but Mike Haydon, the city ‘fly-cop’.
1870		W.E.A. Axon Haunted Bridge 6: Ther wor a yung lass stondin’ by, hearkening to eawr confab.
1876		B. Harte Gabriel Conroy II 221: Your master and I will have our little confab.
1884		Wheeling Dly Intelligencer (WV) 25 Dec. 3/5: He condescended to sit down [...] and ‘hol’ er confab’ with them.
1885		Bulletin (Sydney) 25 Apr. 12/4: Smith and Jones were in deep confab over some comical incident when Jones, the exquisite, hove in sight, fumbling in his waistcoat pocket.
1889		Kipling ‘A Smoke of Manila’ in Civil & Military Gaz. 18 July (1909) 29: ‘He opened the window and held quite a long confab with these second-hand pirates’.
1896		‘Frederick Benton Williams’ (H.E. Hamblen) On Many Seas 286: A council of war was called, and as a result of about five minutes’ confab, two shore-boats put off.
1890		World (N.Y.) 1 July 6/4: It was hinted by those who saw the confab on the Cincinnati grand stand between the great catcher and his old employer that Buck was sick of his new love.
1898		W. Schroeder-Devrient [trans.] Pauline, the Prima Donna 11: These secret confabs did not particularly interest me.
1900		Boy’s Own Paper 24 Nov. 118: There’s no telling what the result of a confab with customers like these may be.
1906		S. Ford Shorty McCabe 51: Now, I don’t know just all they said, nor how they said it, but [...] they must have had a nice little confab there.
1907		Sun. Times (Perth) 6 Jan. 1/1: It is up to the racing Rajahs to have a confab with Connolly.
1911		G. Bronson-Howard Enemy to Society 144: The same old Janissary stuff. [...] We ought to put him out of the room when we have a confab.
1919		‘Bartimeus’ ‘The Wooing of Mouldy Jakes’ in Awfully Big Adventure 38: The children, who sat wide-eyed and silent during this confab.
1928		L. Mackay My Oul’ Town 62: We would sit an’ have a confab over oul’ times.
1938		W. Watson Miss Pettigrew Lives For A Day (2000) 111: ‘Guinevere,’ said Miss LaFosse, ‘meet Tony, a pal of mine’ [...] ‘Have a confab.’.
1939		W. Winchell On Broadway 31 Aug. [synd. col.] Morgan and Sophie Tucker [...] confab’d long in the Stork Club yesterday.
1942		‘Marienne’ ‘Solid Meddlin’’ in People’s Voice (NY) 11 Apr. 30/1: He invites all the couples [...] to a round-table confab.
1948		P. Kavanagh Tarry Flynn (1965) 160: At this point the court adjourned in some consternation and a general confab took place.
1951		D. Stivens Jimmy Brockett 231: I led the confab away to other things and hung up.
1964		J. Orton Entertaining Mr Sloane Act II: We have the odd confab sometimes.
1975		‘P.B. Yuill’ Hazell and the Three-card Trick (1977) 194: The four of us went out for another confab.
1980		L. Mantell Murder and Chips 103: Finished your confab? Feel like a cuppa?
1983		J. Byrell (con. 1959) Up the Cross 59: The Scholar and Nola the Nurse were engaged in [...] a close and confidential confab.
1992		K. Lette Llama Parlour 96: People called Amyl, B.J. and Sky called, offering to do strange things like ‘winging me a Gotham’ for ‘confabs’ with ‘high-rolling honchos’ — whatever they were.
1996		J. Byrell Lairs, Urgers & Coat-Tuggers 85: [S]o more than a month after his 18th birthday, Ern Threfall, after a solid and teary-mother family confab, hit the toe for Sydney.
2001		N. Barlay Hooky Gear 190: Excited like a kid by secret confabs about targets an all that.
2009		J. Stahl Pain Killers 374: What was that about? [...] Your little confab with the local ne’er-do-wells.
2011		J.J. Connolly Viva La Madness 79: Mort also had a few confabs with some seriously connected guys.
2015		P. Beatty Sellout (2016) 245: His black brainiac confabs with Foy.
2021		A. Parks April Dead 171: ‘[H]e was walking up the path to your house, all set for a confab’.
2023		Rayman & Blau Riker’s 193: He had a confab with the Muslim leader.