digressions
Straying from topic
Digressions are departures from the main subject in speech or writing.
A lecturer might wander into personal anecdotes before returning to the topic; a novel might include chapters that stray from the central plot.
The word carries mild disapproval—digressions waste time—but some are welcome: His digressions were more interesting than his main points.
Following a winding course
- wanderingTraveling with no fixed course
- discursiveTending to wander topically
- circuitousIndirect, winding path
- roundaboutCircular junction for traffic
long-winded · verbose · prolix · unfocused · desultory · scattered · disjointed · aimless
Punctuation enclosing supplementary text
- interjectionEmotional outcry word class
- excursusExtended tangential passage
- anecdoteBrief account of incident
- commentaryExplanatory remarks on events
remark · observation · footnote · reflection · clarification · interpolation · sidebar · insertion
Departure from expected path
- departureAct of going away
- veeringChanging direction suddenly
- divergenceSeparation from common origin
- detourAlternate path around obstruction
sidetracking · drifting · wandering · aberration · excursion · tangent · diversion · swerving
Unrelated to discussion
- extraneousNot pertinent or essential
- unrelatedHaving no link
- peripheralExternal computer add-on
- incidentalMinor and unplanned
immaterial · nonessential · superfluous · inapposite · disconnected · inconsequential · inessential · out-of-place
meandering
Following a winding course
- wanderingTraveling with no fixed course
- discursiveTending to wander topically
- circuitousIndirect, winding path
roundabout · long-winded · verbose · prolix · unfocused · desultory · scattered · disjointed · aimless · convoluted
parenthesis
Punctuation enclosing supplementary text
- interjectionEmotional outcry word class
- excursusExtended tangential passage
- anecdoteBrief account of incident
commentary · remark · observation · footnote · reflection · clarification · interpolation · sidebar · insertion · detour
deviation
Departure from expected path
- departureAct of going away
- veeringChanging direction suddenly
- divergenceSeparation from common origin
detour · sidetracking · drifting · wandering · aberration · excursion · tangent · diversion · swerving · branching
off-topic
Unrelated to discussion
- extraneousNot pertinent or essential
- unrelatedHaving no link
- peripheralExternal computer add-on
incidental · immaterial · nonessential · superfluous · inapposite · disconnected · inconsequential · inessential · out-of-place · unnecessary
- evasionevasion, avoiding, avoids, evade, dodging
- Overcommunicationoversharing, rambling, babbling, repeating, flooding
- sidebar contentcallouts, text boxes, pull quotes, insets, captions
- writing flawstypos, spelling errors, plot hole, plot holes, cliche
- trivialitiestrivia, trifles, minutiae, small potatoes, peanuts
- Epic Poetry Elementscantos, invocation, catalogues, funeral games, laments
digressionsmain points
focus · relevance · pertinence · main thread · core argument
digressionsthrough-line
Unifying narrative thread
linear progression · continuity · coherence · storyline · direct path
digressionsdirectness
Quality of being straightforward
succinctness · getting to the point · cutting to the chase · conciseness · brevity