as in rambling
passing from one topic to another
the speaker's discursive style made it difficult to understand his point
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of discursive
For all the discursive conversations about finding meaning in a dying world, this is still fundamentally a show where plot takes precedence over character.
—
Ben Rosenstock, Vulture, 27 Oct. 2024
Although Pinker writes as a scientist, his approach in this book is discursive rather than deductive, charmingly but not quite persuasively advancing his ex cathedra views about life in general.
—Timothy Snyder, Foreign Affairs, 18 Dec. 2011
Morrissey’s films, in contrast, contained more character and narrative (not to mention camera movement), though his films were still out there — with the dialogue often improvised and the stories strange and discursive.
—Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 29 Oct. 2024
His debate performance was widely criticized, even among Republican allies, who lauded Harris for landing several key insults and baiting Trump into delivering several angry, discursive rants.
—Faith E. Pinho, Los Angeles Times, 13 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for discursive 
Ben Rosenstock, Vulture, 27 Oct. 2024
Although Pinker writes as a scientist, his approach in this book is discursive rather than deductive, charmingly but not quite persuasively advancing his ex cathedra views about life in general.
—Timothy Snyder, Foreign Affairs, 18 Dec. 2011
Morrissey’s films, in contrast, contained more character and narrative (not to mention camera movement), though his films were still out there — with the dialogue often improvised and the stories strange and discursive.
—Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 29 Oct. 2024
His debate performance was widely criticized, even among Republican allies, who lauded Harris for landing several key insults and baiting Trump into delivering several angry, discursive rants.
—Faith E. Pinho, Los Angeles Times, 13 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for discursive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for discursive
Adjective
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In the early morning hours of Dec. 26, 1996, Patsy Ramsey called 911 to report her 6-year-old daughter JonBenét missing, and found a rambling ransom note left inside their Boulder, Colorado, home.—
Erin Moriarty,
CBS News,
20 Dec. 2024
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His statement came a day after the release of the Netflix series, which takes viewers back to the morning after Christmas 28 years ago, when JonBenét’s mother called 911 to report finding a rambling ransom note and her daughter missing.—
Elizabeth Chuck,
NBC News,
3 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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But much as the food is worth is worth your focus, so is the bar, set in a separate building out back that’s surrounded by a wandering Southern garden.—
Heidi Finley,
Charlotte Observer,
30 Jan. 2025
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In these instances, music can act as a life jacket by helping wandering minds remain relatively present without getting pulled away by the undercurrent.—
Adam Husler,
Outside Online,
29 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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This only trailed 2023's record-setting number of events by one, and the disasters in 2024 caused at least 568 direct or indirect fatalities, and cost a total of approximately $182.7 billion, per the site.—
Kristan Hawkins,
Newsweek,
6 Feb. 2025
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And although Trump’s latest duties do not target the EU directly, officials in the bloc are aware of their indirect consequences.—
Silvia Amaro,
CNBC,
3 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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In the pugilistic, digressive arena of a YouTube debate, advocates for the right are just more experienced at getting their point across.—
Spencer Kornhaber,
The Atlantic,
23 Jan. 2025
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Famously, his digressive speeches require deep immersion in right-wing lore to comprehend.—
Daniel Immerwahr,
The New Yorker,
20 Jan. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near discursive
Cite this Entry
“Discursive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/discursive. Accessed 21 Feb. 2025.
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