面谈(miàn tán) - to discuss face to face in Mandarin

面谈 (miàntán) means to discuss something face to face, in person rather than by phone, letter, or message. 面 (miàn) means "face" and 谈 (tán) means "to talk, to chat", so the compound is literally "to talk face-to-face".

It is the word for arranging a proper, often slightly formal, in-person conversation: a manager might say 我们面谈吧 (wǒmen miàntán ba), "let's discuss this in person", when a matter is too sensitive or complicated for a phone call. It overlaps with 面试 (miànshì, from mian4-shi4), interview, but 面谈 is broader: it covers any face-to-face discussion, not only a job or school interview.

English speakers reaching for "let's talk about it in person" sometimes over-translate with a longer phrase built from 见面 (jiànmiàn, from jian4-mian4), "to meet", plus 谈 (tán), "to talk". That works, but 面谈 is the tighter, ready-made word a native speaker would actually reach for in an email or on the phone.