tangential
adjective
tan·gen·tial
| \ tan-ˈjen(t)-shəl
\
\
Definition of tangential
1a
: 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
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Other Words from tangential
tangentially
\ tan-ˈjen(t)-sh(ə-)lē
\
adverb
\
adverb
Examples of tangential in a Sentence
Their romance is tangential to the book's main plot.
Recent Examples on the Web
This team member posts their whereabouts on Slack: They’re at a conference, at class (coursework tangential to their job), working from home! — Megan Greenwell, New York Times, "Is My Millennial Co-Worker a Narcissist, or Am I a Jealous Jerk?," 23 Aug. 2019 In the first four Democratic presidential debates, the issue of gay rights has mostly been tangential and brief, said Sarah Kate Ellis, president and CEO of GLAAD, the LGBT media advocacy group. — Jeff Green, Fortune, "LGBT Advocates Worry Gay Rights Focus Lacking in Democratic Race," 9 Aug. 2019 As with many great bands, the members of the Turtles have interesting tangential stories, having prolific post-Turtles careers providing back-up vocals for artists like T. Rex, Frank Zappa, Alice Cooper, Blondie, Steely Dan and Bruce Springsteen. — John Adamian, courant.com, "The Turtles and ’60s popsters happy together at Garde Arts," 21 June 2019 So why is a carbon tax MIA in these big, splashy plans that somehow found room for so many tangential provisions? — Catherine Rampell, The Denver Post, "Rampell: Everyone’s got a climate plan, but where’s the carbon tax?," 9 June 2019 Put in tangential search terms and the world is your oyster. — Allison Duncan, WSJ, "The Expert’s Guide to Scoring Décor Deals Online," 14 Feb. 2019 In other words, EO 12333 protects the tangential collection of Americans' data even when Americans aren't specifically targeted—otherwise, it would be forbidden under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) of 1978. — Cyrus Farivar, Ars Technica, "Meet the 8 spooky AT&T buildings that almost certainly also serve the NSA," 25 June 2018 There’s no huge story arc, just minor connections that are offhand and tangential, with glancing references and winks at the audience. — Mick Lasalle, San Francisco Chronicle, "Ask Mick LaSalle: Don’t ignore huge story arc connecting all ‘Avengers’ movies," 9 May 2018 In contrast, Iraqi courts have sentenced hundreds of IS suspects to death in swift trials, and even tangential links to the militant group are punished by sentenced of 15 years or life. — Washington Post, "Syria’s Kurds put IS on trial with focus on reconciliation," 7 May 2018These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'tangential.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for tangential
tangential
adjective
English Language Learners Definition of tangential
formal
: slightly or indirectly related to something : not closely connected to something
geometry
: relating to a tangent : in or along a tangent
See the full definition for tangential in the English Language Learners Dictionary