sidebar

noun

side·​bar ˈsīd-ˌbär 

1

a

: a short news story or graphic accompanying and presenting sidelights of a major story

b

: something incidental : sidelight

a sidebar to the essay's central theme

2

: a conference between the judge, the lawyers, and sometimes the parties to a case that the jury does not hear

Examples of sidebar in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Connect a service by heading to the sidebar in ChatGPT and selecting Health > Get started. — James Peckham, PC Magazine, 24 July 2026

The sidebar typically screens one or two episodes and holds informal conversations with cast and creators in Toronto. — Etan Vlessing, HollywoodReporter, 23 July 2026

GdA’s 23rd edition is dedicated to the sidebar’s founder and longtime champion, film critic and festival exec Giorgio Gosetti who died suddenly and unexpectedly in March. — Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 22 July 2026

Trade missions, two‑way investment, student and scientific exchanges, and cultural and digital learning partnerships should be seen as core tools of American diplomacy, not sidebars. — David Bohigian, Fortune, 19 July 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1928, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Rhymes for sidebar

• abattoir
• alcazar
• autocar
• avatar
• belshazzar
• caviar
• caviare
• cinnabar
• commissar
• condylar
• deodar
• handlebar

Legal Definition

sidebar

noun

side·​bar ˈsīd-ˌbär 

: sidebar conference

had failed to request a sidebar before injecting the collateral offense into the trial

—Dockery v. State, 659 So. 2d 219 (1994)

also : the place near or before the bench where a sidebar conference takes place

the judge informed both attorneys…that they…could stand at sidebar while questions were posed

—Commonwealth v. Urena, 632 N.E.2d 1200 (1994)

compare bench, stand

sidebar adjective