beside the point
Not at issue
Something beside the point is irrelevant to the matter at hand—it may be true or interesting, but it doesn't address what's actually being discussed.
The phrase is commonly used to redirect a conversation back to what matters: Whether he meant to do it is beside the point; the damage is done.
It can also serve as a polite way to dismiss someone's argument without directly contradicting it.
- off-topicUnrelated to discussion
- extraneousNot pertinent or essential
- wide of the markMissing the intended target
- irrelevantNot pertinent
- immaterialLacking physical form; unimportant
unrelated · neither here nor there · non sequitur · inapplicable · moot · nonessential · unrequired · off base · off track · pointless · barking up the wrong tree · inconsequential · unimportant · tangential · peripheral · splitting hairs · impertinent · trivial
- nonessentialunnecessary, unneeded, nonessential, inessential, dispensable