tangent 1 of 2

noun

ˈtan-jənt How to pronounce tangent (audio)
Definition of tangentnext
as in aside
a departure from the subject under consideration in the middle of her description of her dog's symptoms, she went off on a tangent about its cute behavior

Synonyms & Similar Words

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tangent

2 of 2

adjective

as in tangential

Related Words

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of tangent
Noun
In conversation, Friedland is rapaciously curious, if slightly disorganized, prone to tangents that lead to a candidness that can verge on cringe or awkward. — Jeff Ihaza, Rolling Stone, 29 June 2026 In a near-seven-minute tangent during Presti’s annual end-of-season availability, which ran almost two hours, Presti addressed the discourse surrounding SGA’s proclivity to draw fouls — a subject that swelled this season between opposing coaches and players to fans and pundits. — Joel Lorenzi, New York Times, 9 June 2026
Adjective
This imaginary friend guides him through the tangent universe, encourages him to commit a series of crimes, and ends up triggering a chain of supernatural events. — Anatola Araba, ELLE, 1 Sep. 2022 An early tangent veers into naval warfare, with various forces fighting for crucial shipping lanes. — Darren Franich, EW.com, 19 Aug. 2022 See All Example Sentences for tangent
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tangent
  1. aside
  2. tangential
  3. digression
  4. peripheral
  5. incidental
  6. irrelevant
Noun
  • What makes this such an exhilarating watch is how the performers navigate every passive-aggressive aside, every catty comment, every choice bit of annoying behavior played for laughs, pathos, or both at once.
    — David Fear, Rolling Stone, 26 June 2026
  • Lest anyone think that Norway’s competitive spirit has been diminished by its promotion to the round of 32, Haaland slipped in an aside that served as a reminder that his team basically rowed all the way here to the States in a longship.
    — Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 26 June 2026
Definition of aside
Adjective
  • There is significant worry about the status of Christian Pulisic’s calf, and there’s also a bit of tangential drama here for the Australians.
    — Chris Branch, New York Times, 19 June 2026
  • But Sawyer held off on adding the amendment to House Bill 1094, a tangential bill requiring an audit of NCDOT’s ferry division.
    — DJ Simmons, Charlotte Observer, 17 June 2026
Definition of tangential
Noun
  • With its loose ends and digressions, Dream Me a Dream stays true to those idiosyncratic instincts while retaining enough of the welcoming glow of Dance of Love to make this an affecting farewell from an endearing eccentric.
    — Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Pitchfork, 22 June 2026
  • Reading Dyer at exactly that moment gave me permission to loosen my grip a little and allow my own digressions into the work.
    — Erik Pedersen, Oc Register, 16 June 2026
Definition of digression
Adjective
  • Unable to play with any fluency, Argentina toiled and Messi was peripheral.
    — Stuart James, New York Times, 12 July 2026
  • Few peripheral figures around baseball become as recognizable as the players on the field, but that was the case for one longtime fixture at Chicago Cubs home games.
    — Peter Chawaga, Forbes.com, 5 July 2026
Definition of peripheral
Adjective
  • American Express relies on airlines to submit the correct information on airline transactions to identify incidental fee purchases.
    — Jason Stauffer, CNBC, 13 July 2026
  • The contact between Balogun and the Bosnian player was clearly incidental, with both going for the ball, leading to the awkward foot placement.
    — Ian Miller OutKick, FOXNews.com, 6 July 2026
Definition of incidental
Adjective
  • The idea is to learn the structure that matters for prediction and planning without spending huge amounts of compute modeling irrelevant visual detail.
    — ArsTechnica, ArsTechnica, 13 July 2026
  • Paramount had argued that the requests were irrelevant to the antitrust issues the state is investigating.
    — Gene Maddaus, Variety, 11 July 2026
Definition of irrelevant

Browse Nearby Words

tanged
tangent
tangential
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Cite this Entry

“Tangent.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tangent. Accessed 19 Jul. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on tangent

Nglish: Translation of tangent for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about tangent

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