digress
Leave the subject
To digress is to wander from the main subject in speech or writing: I digress, but this reminds me of a story.
The word acknowledges a temporary departure before returning to the point.
A digression is such a departure—sometimes apologized for, sometimes deliberately indulged: Allow me a brief digression.
Turn from course
- veerChange course suddenly
- swerveAbrupt directional change
- departLeave a place
- divergeSeparate into directions
stray · drift · wander · deflect · sidetrack · branch off · turn aside · lose focus
Line touching curve once
- asideBrief theatrical digression
- parenthesisPunctuation enclosing supplementary text
- excursusExtended tangential passage
- footnoteCitation at page bottom
detour · departure · diversion · excursion · sidetrack · sidebar · interjection · interruption
deviate
Turn from course
diverge · stray · drift · wander · deflect · sidetrack · branch off · turn aside · lose focus · shift
tangent
Line touching curve once
- asideBrief theatrical digression
- parenthesisPunctuation enclosing supplementary text
- excursusExtended tangential passage
footnote · detour · departure · diversion · excursion · sidetrack · sidebar · interjection · interruption · deviation
ramble
Move or speak without direction
- meanderTo travel without direction
- wanderMove without fixed direction
- maunderSpeak in unfocused circles
prattle · babble · blather · drift · diverge · stray · lose the thread · go off on a tangent · expatiate · discursive
digressfocus
Concentrated attention point
concentrate · stay focused · stay on track · stay the course · hone in