Sentence:  All this was extraordinarily distasteful to Churchill....Never before had he felt such repulsion when the vicar displayed his characteristic bluntness or coarseness of speech. In the present connexion&mdash;or rather as a transition from the subject that started their <WSD>conversation</WSD>&mdash;such talk had been distressingly out of place. 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  Expression and exchange of individual ideas through talking with other people; also, a set instance or occasion of such talking. (from 16th c.)