adj.

1. Of, relating to, or moving along or in the direction of a tangent.
2. Merely touching or slightly connected.
3. Only superficially relevant; divergent: a tangential remark.

tangentiality tan·gen'ti·al'i·ty (-shē-ăl'ĭ-tē) n.
tangentially tan·gen'tial·ly adv.

adjective

Marked by or given to digression: digressive, discursive, excursive, parenthetic, parenthetical, rambling. See approach/retreat.

IN BRIEF: adj. - Of or relating to or acting along or in the direction of a diverging point adj. - Of superficial relevance if any.

Tutor's tip: This word was used in the 2006 Scripps National Spelling Bee finals.

Note: click on a word meaning below to see its connections and related words.

The adjective has 2 meanings:

Meaning #1: of superficial relevance if any
  Synonym: digressive

Meaning #2: of or relating to or acting along or in the direction of a tangent
  Pertains to noun: tangent (meaning #1)

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Dansk (Danish)
adj. - tangential-, tangerende

Nederlands (Dutch)
zijdelings, oppervlakkig

Français (French)
adj. - tangentiel, (fig) secondaire

Deutsch (German)
adj. - Tangential-, nebensächlich

Ελληνική (Greek)
adj. - εφαπτόμενος, της εφαπτομένης

Italiano (Italian)
tangenziale

Português (Portuguese)
adj. - tangencial

Русский (Russian)
отклоняющийся от темы

Español (Spanish)
adj. - tangencial

Svenska (Swedish)
adj. - tangentiell, tangential-, ovidkommande, som hoppar från det ena till det andra

中文（简体） (Chinese (Simplified))
切线的, 正切的, 相切的

中文（繁體） (Chinese (Traditional))
adj. - 切線的, 正切的, 相切的

한국어 (Korean)
adj. - 접선의, 접하는, 접선에 따라 작용하는

日本語 (Japanese)
adj. - 接線の, 正接の

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(صفه) منحرف, تماسي, مماس,‏

עברית (Hebrew)
adj. - ‮סוטה, נוגע, משיק‬

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