as in distracting
to draw the attention or mind to something else
numerous typos in the text detract the reader's attention from the novel's intricate plot
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Recent Examples of detracting
Some asserted that the commitment and costs of traveling and attending meetings paired with the limited compensation was detracting members of the public from running for office.
—
Luis Melecio-Zambrano, Mercury News, 19 Sep. 2025
Luis Melecio-Zambrano, Mercury News, 19 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for detracting
Verb
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Karbler notes that Bigelow resisted that depiction for fear of distracting from the emotional moment.—
Jake Kring-Schreifels,
Time,
27 Oct. 2025
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Surprisingly, the injury helped him in this regard by distracting him from overanalyzing his game.—
Devlina Sarkar,
MSNBC Newsweek,
25 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The plan included launching a mobile booking station to quickly issue citations, stricter curfew and firearm enforcement, and increasing police presence by diverting patrol officers to high-traffic entertainment areas.—
Angelika Ytuarte,
jsonline.com,
22 Oct. 2025
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In total, Alex was found to have embezzled more than $6 million from at least two dozen clients, inflating fees or expenses and diverting settlement money into his own accounts, per PBS.—
Samantha Stutsman,
PEOPLE,
22 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Detracting.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/detracting. Accessed 5 Nov. 2025.
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