excursive

adjective

ik-ˈskər-siv How to pronounce excursive (audio)
Definition of excursivenext
as in rambling
passing from one topic to another an excursive story line that some readers of Melville's novel find very rewarding

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for excursive
  1. rambling
  2. wandering
  3. discursive
  4. indirect
Adjective
  • The chaotic hearing was marked by Castro-Arroyo rambling and frequently interrupting Miami-Dade Circuit Court Judge Ellen Sue Venzer as an interpreter translated the proceeding.
    — Grethel Aguila, Miami Herald, 6 Aug. 2026
  • On the latest episode of The Daily Show, Jon Stewart took aim at Donald Trump‘s rambling speech during the White House Correspondents’ Dinner.
    — Emily Zemler, Rolling Stone, 28 July 2026
Definition of rambling
Adjective
  • Conversations became muted and wandering eyes focused their attention.
    — Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 6 Aug. 2026
  • The report notes the area is known by detectives to be a high crime area with multiple stray dogs and wandering drug users.
    — Rafael Escalera Montoto, Arkansas Online, 5 Aug. 2026
Definition of wandering
Adjective
  • Was the discursive thread accidental, or emblematic of the two poles the AI industry is now bifurcated between?
    — Anisha Sircar, Forbes.com, 30 July 2026
  • Like members of the Women’s Rights Convention, these outsiders often invoked the Declaration of Independence as a discursive weapon.
    — Brian DeLay, Mercury News, 4 July 2026
Definition of discursive
Adjective
  • Measures, such as the awarding of an indirect free-kick if a player deliberately heads the ball, were introduced in order to discourage children from heading.
    — Leon Imber, New York Times, 26 July 2026
  • The return is indirect and the case is harder to make, but skimping here is what causes horizon-one wins to plateau and horizon-three ambitions to collapse.
    — Farooque Munshi, Forbes.com, 23 July 2026
Definition of indirect
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.

Browse Nearby Words

excursions
excursive
excursively
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Excursive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/excursive. Accessed 9 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of anecdote

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

'Sneaked' or 'Snuck': Which is correct?

Why does English have so many silent letters?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Aug. 7

How long is a jiffy?
See More

Popular

See More

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
fridge-magnet-letters
Drop a Letter Quiz August 2026 Drop a letter from a word to make a totally diffe...
See All