noun
quiet conversation; talking quietly
Refers to a calm, low-voiced chat, often in a relaxed setting. Not necessarily secretive.
喫茶店で友達と閑話を楽しんだ。
I enjoyed a quiet conversation with a friend at the café.
noun
Light, casual talk without serious purpose; often used in the set phrase 閑話休題 (well, let's get back to the topic).
会議の前に少し閑話を交わした。
We exchanged a little small talk before the meeting.
閑話休題、本題に入りましょう。
Well, enough small talk; let's get to the main topic.
Compound of 閑 (quiet, leisure) and 話 (talk, story). The variant 間話 uses 間 (interval, between) with a similar meaning. The exact historical derivation is uncertain.