verbal autopilot
When you don't really want to engage with someone who is telling the same story for the 100th time so you reply with variations of 'Yeah' or 'Dang', 'Wow', 'OMG'. Because you don't want to be rude.
Did Jim tell you that story of when he met Freddy Kruger at that convention, AGAIN?!
Oh yea, but I just went on verbal autopilot during the story.
Oh yea, but I just went on verbal autopilot during the story.