digression
noun
di·gres·sion
dī-ˈgre-shən 
də-
1
: the act or an instance of leaving the main subject in an extended written or verbal expression of thought : the act or an instance of digressing in a discourse or other usually organized literary work
Every place Hamilton, his parents, or his wife visited over a century's time is described at length; everyone he met merits at least a minor biographical digression.—
Willard Sterne Randall
Willard Sterne Randall2
archaic
: a going aside
Examples of digression in a Sentence
the professor's frequent and extended digressions are the stuff of campus legend
Recent Examples on the Web
Gottlieb followed up that social media digression by taking to X just before Wednesday’s game to give his take on whether Michigan’s Trey Burke fouled Louisville’s Peyton Siva during a block attempt in the 2013 NCAA men’s basketball national championship.
—Daniel Libit, Sportico.com, 18 Dec. 2024
The digression began after the talk show host flashed a photo of Posey posing with his pants down on an open highway behind his motorcycle, which the actor had posted to social media, covering his rump with a skull emoji.
—Wesley Stenzel, EW.com, 7 Dec. 2024
His religious ramblings and digressions aren’t always coherent or particularly clever, but that’s by design — and the real thrill comes from trying to determine, as Barnes and Paxton work to do, exactly what kind of psychopath Mr. Reed is.
—Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 19 Dec. 2024
Chapter 4 brings us through a long digression into extreme poverty.
—David A. Teich, Forbes, 5 Dec. 2024
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Daniel Libit, Sportico.com, 18 Dec. 2024
The digression began after the talk show host flashed a photo of Posey posing with his pants down on an open highway behind his motorcycle, which the actor had posted to social media, covering his rump with a skull emoji.
—Wesley Stenzel, EW.com, 7 Dec. 2024
His religious ramblings and digressions aren’t always coherent or particularly clever, but that’s by design — and the real thrill comes from trying to determine, as Barnes and Paxton work to do, exactly what kind of psychopath Mr. Reed is.
—Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 19 Dec. 2024
Chapter 4 brings us through a long digression into extreme poverty.
—David A. Teich, Forbes, 5 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for digression
Dictionary Entries Near digression
Cite this Entry
“Digression.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/digression. Accessed 20 Jan. 2025.
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