segue

1 of 3

imperative verb

se·​gue ˈse-(ˌ)gwā 

ˈsā-

1

: proceed to what follows without pause

—used as a direction in music

2

: perform the music that follows like that which has preceded

—used as a direction in music

segue

2 of 3

verb

segued; segueing

intransitive verb

1

: to proceed without pause from one musical number or theme to another

2

: to make a transition without interruption from one activity, topic, scene, or part to another

segued smoothly into the next story

segue

3 of 3

noun

: a transition made without pause or interruption : the act or an instance of segueing (see segue entry 2)

Did you know?

Segue vs Segway

Segue is occasionally found spelled segway, even in edited text. There are two likely reasons for this: the familiar suffix –way (as seen in driveway and runway) seems to agree with the notion of a segue as a "path" along which something transitions; and the existence of the homophone Segway as a trade name for an American company that produces electric transportation devices. The standard spelling segue comes from the use of the word's Italian root as a direction in music, indicating a transition without interruption.

Examples of segue in a Sentence

Verb

Then he quickly segues into the dangers of being too hard on cops who make an honest mistake. That turns out to be the moral of the story, the perils of politics intruding on the job. —Ted Conover, New York Times Book Review, 18 Apr. 2004

As the Klamath Mountains segue into the Coast Range, moist Pacific air creeps up the river valley in cottony mists. —Bruce Barcott, Mother Jones, May–June 2003

But for casual acquaintances, keep your response brief. Just say "I'm happy for him," and segue into another topic. —Kitty Flynn, Cosmopolitan, December 2000

She quickly segued to the next topic.

The band smoothly segued from one song to the next.

In the movie, a shot of the outside of the house segued neatly to a shot of the family inside the house.

Noun

The evening news continued, a fast segue into a promo for that night's showcase program, an inquiry into the sources of the civic genius of Bonaparte … —Ward Just, Forgetfulness, (2006) 2007

Making a smooth segue into foreign policy, he offered a nuanced assessment of Russia's acting President Vladimir Putin as "showing signs of pragmatism," but added, correctly, that "anyone who tells you they have Putin figured out is blowing smoke." —James Carney, Time, 21 Feb. 2000

Recent Examples on the Web

Imperative verb

The shopping holidays now often segue straight into each other with no real break, like Amazon's Black Friday Week, which ends Nov. 29 and bleeds directly into its Cyber Monday sale from Nov. 29 to Dec. 2. —Mary Walrath-Holdridge, The Courier-Journal, 29 Nov. 2024

After Flynn’s death, Mahon segued into low-budget movies like the Mystery Science Theater 3000 favorite Rocket Attack U.S.A., before moving even further down the cinematic food chain as the auteur behind nudie films with such titles as The Adventures of Busty Brown and Run Swinger Run! —Keith Phipps, Vulture, 25 Nov. 2024

Verb

It’s also segued into a sobering new act of event-hosting — memorials. —Gary Baum, The Hollywood Reporter, 9 Dec. 2024

The shopping holidays now often segue straight into each other with no real break, like Amazon's Black Friday Week, which ends Nov. 29 and bleeds directly into its Cyber Monday sale from Nov. 29 to Dec. 2. —Mary Walrath-Holdridge, The Courier-Journal, 29 Nov. 2024

Noun

But Dorit made the segue into reality TV look easy. —Daisy Jones, Vogue, 10 Dec. 2024

His very funny and touching stories about his own tender childhood segue into pieces about his regrets, anxieties, and triumphs as a father. —Brian Boone, Vulture, 6 Dec. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Imperative verb, Verb, and Noun

Italian, there follows, from seguire to follow, from Latin sequi — more at sue

First Known Use

Imperative Verb

circa 1740, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

circa 1913, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

circa 1937, in the meaning defined above