as in irrelevant
having little to do with the matter at hand
Your point is tangential to the main objective of this meeting so please save it for later.
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of tangential
And some seemingly tangential issues aren’t so tangential after all.
—
Kevin Williams, Quartz, 22 Apr. 2025
Indeed, Buchwald won; the suit was famous in Hollywood circles regarding a tangential issue, namely laying bare the industry accounting practices that kept even wildly successful films from ever making a profit on paper.
—Bill Wyman, Vulture, 28 Feb. 2025
Much like Kiryu's spy caper, Pirate Yakuza takes what would be tangential in the main series — a whacky combat arena — and centers a plot around it.
—James Perkins Mastromarino, NPR, 14 Mar. 2025
On the page, a sequence in which Zoe and Kathryn have a testy session might read as tangential, even if the dialogue sings.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 12 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for tangential
Kevin Williams, Quartz, 22 Apr. 2025
Indeed, Buchwald won; the suit was famous in Hollywood circles regarding a tangential issue, namely laying bare the industry accounting practices that kept even wildly successful films from ever making a profit on paper.
—Bill Wyman, Vulture, 28 Feb. 2025
Much like Kiryu's spy caper, Pirate Yakuza takes what would be tangential in the main series — a whacky combat arena — and centers a plot around it.
—James Perkins Mastromarino, NPR, 14 Mar. 2025
On the page, a sequence in which Zoe and Kathryn have a testy session might read as tangential, even if the dialogue sings.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 12 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for tangential
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tangential
Adjective
-
This is the myth of convergence, fueling concerns that AI will flatten the field, that strategy becomes irrelevant when everyone has access to the same intelligence.—
Shekar Natarajan,
Forbes.com,
12 June 2025
-
But freshness can be irrelevant at the box office for these ventures.—
Michael Phillips,
Chicago Tribune,
11 June 2025
Adjective
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The slope, or steepness, of the tangent line measures how quickly the function is changing at that point.—
Solomon Adams,
WIRED,
23 Feb. 2025
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By 1643, René Descartes had discovered a simple relationship between the curvatures of any four circles that are tangent to each other.—
Quanta Magazine,
Quanta Magazine,
10 Aug. 2023
Adjective
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This is when atherosclerosis develops in the arteries of the arms and legs, called the peripheral arteries.—
MD Published,
Verywell Health,
5 June 2025
-
The film world premiered in the non-competitive Cannes Premiere section, but clinched a peripheral prize with its canine cast member, sheepdog Panda, beating 24 other candidates to win the Palm Dog.—
Melanie Goodfellow,
Deadline,
4 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Tangential.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tangential. Accessed 17 Jun. 2025.
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