tangential

adjective

tan·​gen·​tial tan-ˈjen(t)-shəl 

1

a

: touching lightly : incidental, peripheral

tangential involvement

also : of little relevance

arguments tangential to the main point

b

: divergent, digressive

2

: of, relating to, or of the nature of a tangent

3

: acting along or lying in a tangent

tangential forces

tangentially

tan-ˈjen(t)-sh(ə-)lē 

adverb

Did you know?

Tangential Has Mathematical Roots

In geometry, a tangent is a straight line that touches a curve at a single point. So we say that someone who starts talking about one thing and gets sidetracked has gone off on a tangent. The new subject is tangential to the first subject—it touches it and moves off in a different direction.

Examples of tangential in a Sentence

Their romance is tangential to the book's main plot.

Recent Examples on the Web

Not all of the figures are directly connected to Handel, and at times King’s deep background verges on the tangential. —Jan Swafford, The Atlantic, 29 Oct. 2024

One of the clear, if tangential, takeaways from Monsó’s book is that predation is a very tough business. —Kathryn Schulz, The New Yorker, 28 Oct. 2024

The clip that Baier asked Harris to react to was actually of Trump (James Austin Johnson) making one of his tangential ramblings at an all-female town hall–the one filled with his supporters, which Fox didn’t disclose. —William Vaillancourt, Rolling Stone, 20 Oct. 2024

The caliber resulted in the filing of six patents for its tangential brake, dual-function spring mechanism, flexible corrector, dual-function spring, flexible plate, and positioning mechanism. —Paige Reddinger, Robb Report, 17 Oct. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1630, in the meaning defined at sense 2