tangential
Use Tangential in a sentence
ʃəl adjective
2.
merely touching; slightly connected: tangential information.
3.
divergent or digressive, as from a subject under consideration: tangential remarks.
4.
tending to digress or to reply to questions obliquely.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To tangential
00:10
Tangential
is always a great word to know.
So is bezoar. Does it mean:
| a calculus or concretion found in the stomach or intestines of certain animals, esp. ruminants, formerly reputed to be an effective remedy for poison. |
| a fool or simpleton; ninny. |
Collins
World English Dictionary
tangential (tænˈdʒɛnʃəl) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —adj | |
| 1. | of, being, relating to, or in the direction of a tangent |
| 2. | astronomy Compare radial Also: transverse (of velocity) in a direction perpendicular to the line of sight of a celestial object |
| 3. | of superficial relevance only; digressive |
| tangenti'ality | |
| —n | |
| tan'gentially | |
| —adv | |
| tan'gentally | |
| —adv | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
tangential
1620s, see tangent; figurative sense of "divergent, erratic" is from 1787. Related: Tangentially.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Example sentences
The topics discussed here seem tangential to being president.
Indeed, several of the miniature portraits here are occasions for tangential reflections.
For an infinitesimally thin surface element, stresses are tangential as radial stresses go to zero on the surface.
It is a quite different state, a state that bears only a tangential resemblance to normal emotion.
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