tangential

Definition of tangentialnext

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 tangential Other undisclosed connections are more tangential. Max Tani, semafor.com, 15 June 2026 The Houthis made a similar threat during the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip and killed at least nine mariners and sank four ships in over 100 attacks, often targeting vessels with tangential or no ties to Israel. Jon Gambrell, Chicago Tribune, 8 June 2026 There have been a few tangential PigPen sightings in the state before now. Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 31 May 2026 Kidd’s relationship to the trade, even if tangential, became a defining point in his tenure as the Mavericks’ head coach. Mac Engel may 20, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 20 May 2026 See All Example Sentences for tangential
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tangential
Adjective
  • The migrants were never going to be able to reach the mainland EU, but that fact was irrelevant to hard-right, anti-migrant politicians around the world who portrayed the incident in apocalyptic terms.
    Issy Ronald, CNN Money, 3 Aug. 2026
  • There’s a big difference between irrelevant and less relevant.
    Shep Hyken, Forbes.com, 2 Aug. 2026
Adjective
  • That means mathematicians can approximate these rotations with a straight line that touches the circle at just one point — a tangent line.
    Leila Sloman, Quanta Magazine, 3 Dec. 2025
  • The slope, or steepness, of the tangent line measures how quickly the function is changing at that point.
    Solomon Adams, WIRED, 23 Feb. 2025
Adjective
  • Even in the third-person narration of Call of the Wild the dramatis personae of eccentric, infighting dogs overshadows the flat and peripheral human characters until Thornton appears.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 5 Aug. 2026
  • Born from a collaboration between OpenAI and Work Louder, a peripheral maker best known for making retrofuturistic mechanical keyboards, the Codex Micro is a curious device.
    Brian Westover, PC Magazine, 3 Aug. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Tangential.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tangential. Accessed 6 Aug. 2026.

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