digression
Straying from topic
A digression is a departure from the main subject in speech or writing.
Someone telling a story might pause to explain background, then say But I digress before returning to the point.
Digressions can enrich or derail, depending on their length and relevance.
The verb is digress.
Line touching curve once
- asideBrief theatrical digression
- excursusExtended tangential passage
- parenthesisPunctuation enclosing supplementary text
- departureAct of going away
deviation · detour · ramble · divergence · circumlocution · meandering · wandering · straying
Subordinate narrative strand
- interludePause between sections
- flashbackInvoluntary past memory
- asideBrief theatrical digression
- episodeSerialized content unit
vignette · anecdote · tangent · detour · excursus · interpolation · frame story · backstory
Extended tangential passage
- footnoteCitation at page bottom
- endnoteBack-of-book citation
- appendixSupplementary section after main text
- sidebarAncillary text box
parenthetical · annotation · addendum · marginalia · gloss · commentary · elaboration · tangent
Line touching curve once
- sidetrackDivert from purpose
- asideBrief theatrical digression
- rambleMove or speak without direction
- segueUnbroken passage between sections
off-topic · rabbit hole · wandering · meandering · getting sidetracked · storytelling · anecdote · parenthetical
tangent
Line touching curve once
- asideBrief theatrical digression
- excursusExtended tangential passage
- parenthesisPunctuation enclosing supplementary text
departure · deviation · detour · ramble · divergence · circumlocution · meandering · wandering · straying · sidetrack
subplot
Subordinate narrative strand
episode · vignette · anecdote · tangent · detour · excursus · interpolation · frame story · backstory · parenthetical
excursus
Extended tangential passage
- footnoteCitation at page bottom
- endnoteBack-of-book citation
- appendixSupplementary section after main text
sidebar · parenthetical · annotation · addendum · marginalia · gloss · commentary · elaboration · tangent · aside
tangent
Line touching curve once
segue · off-topic · rabbit hole · wandering · meandering · getting sidetracked · storytelling · anecdote · parenthetical · incidentally
- Off Tracklost, detour, tangent, sidetrack, veer
- utterancesutterance, statements, exclamation, assertion, questions
- distractionsdistraction, tangent, sidetrack, diversion, detour
- literary devicesmetaphor, simile, hyperbole, personification, alliteration
- asidesaside, tangent, sidenote, side note, parenthetical
- digressionstangent, aside, sidetrack, detour, ramble
digressionmain point
Essential takeaway of something
relevance · pertinence · focus · thesis · substance
digressiondirectness
Quality of being straightforward
straightness · straight line · linear progression · beeline · direct approach
digressioncontinuity
Uninterrupted progression or coherence
adherence · consistency · regularity · conformity · continuation