as in rambling
passing from one topic to another
the speaker's discursive style made it difficult to understand his point
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Recent Examples of discursive
His palette is light, smudgy guitar textures and warm synths; his message, more gestural than discursive, is love and lust.
—
Pitchfork, 4 Dec. 2025
For all the revelry, there was a tough, discursive seriousness in the approach that Lang and O’Hara took to their labors in the late forties and early fifties.
—Anthony Lane, New Yorker, 13 Oct. 2025
The story of Jussie Smollett had the effect of sucking one individual into a near-perfect storm of discursive tripwires.
—Daniel D'addario, Variety, 20 Aug. 2025
American leaders and commentators often portrayed international adversaries in unflattering and discursive brushstrokes.
—Time, 8 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for discursive
Pitchfork, 4 Dec. 2025
For all the revelry, there was a tough, discursive seriousness in the approach that Lang and O’Hara took to their labors in the late forties and early fifties.
—Anthony Lane, New Yorker, 13 Oct. 2025
The story of Jussie Smollett had the effect of sucking one individual into a near-perfect storm of discursive tripwires.
—Daniel D'addario, Variety, 20 Aug. 2025
American leaders and commentators often portrayed international adversaries in unflattering and discursive brushstrokes.
—Time, 8 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for discursive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for discursive
Adjective
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The North Carolina folk-rock band’s quiet and rambling third album exists in a cloud of dreamy contemplation.—
Jayson Greene,
Pitchfork,
1 Apr. 2026
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Trump’s speech was at times entertaining, rambling, repetitive, and combative.—
Matthew Martin,
semafor.com,
30 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
The adventurous rapper and producer take a more refined approach on a collaborative album full of wandering thoughts and odd, understated beats.—
Stephen Kearse,
Pitchfork,
24 Mar. 2026
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Another bill would require the Maryland Department of Health to create a webpage of resources for caregivers of individuals — due to age, disability, chronic illness or other functional limitations — including guidance on safety planning for wandering and elopement.—
Danielle J. Brown,
Baltimore Sun,
22 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
The Iranian regime has yet to formally respond to a new proposal drafted by Pakistan, which was handed to Washington and Tehran on Sunday evening after indirect talks over the weekend.—
Lucia I Suarez Sang,
CBS News,
7 Apr. 2026
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Wealthy couples frequently set up spousal lifetime access trusts, or SLATs, to get assets out of their estate but keep indirect access to them through their spouse.—
Hayley Cuccinello,
CNBC,
2 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Like all Kashian’s work, Alter-Kashian is densely packed, and her breakneck, digressive style doesn’t leave much room to come up for air.—
Hershal Pandya,
Vulture,
30 Mar. 2026
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The Friend’s House Is Here, with its relaxed pace and digressive sequences of late-night dinner parties, feels like a minor Godard hangout movie.—
Taylor Antrim,
Vogue,
30 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Discursive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/discursive. Accessed 7 Apr. 2026.
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