1
as in tangent
a departure from the subject under consideration
this may well appear to be a divagation at first, but I hope to establish the relevance
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in deviation
a turning away from a course or standard
a self-consciously "literary" novel that represents a major divagation from traditional narrative
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for divagation
Noun
-
June 21 – July 22 Wandering down conversational tangents will be especially tempting today.—
Tarot.com,
New York Daily News,
31 Mar. 2026 -
The original investigation spawned two main tangents involving Becciu, once a leading Vatican cardinal and future papal contender.—
NICOLE WINFIELD THE ASSOCIATED PRESS,
Arkansas Online,
18 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
But there are other deviations as well.—
Justin Chang,
New Yorker,
10 Apr. 2026
-
The system uses sensor feedback to adjust for small deviations over time.—
Aamir Khollam,
Interesting Engineering,
9 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
That was being held up by Hungary’s Viktor Orbán, but his departure as prime minister after weekend elections could free up the sum.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
14 Apr. 2026
-
The rooftop and courtyard of the American Embassy, plus thirteen other buildings in Saigon and Tan Son Nhut, were designated as departure points.—
Louis Menand,
New Yorker,
13 Apr. 2026
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Cite this Entry
“Divagation.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/divagation. Accessed 21 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
