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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Recent Examples of discursive
The concerto can appear undisciplined and discursive, with a running time of 70 minutes, a medley-like approach to style and a finale that brings in a male choir for a paean to nature.
—
Joshua Barone, New York Times, 24 Dec. 2024
Their discursive subjects might include an elevator speech to prep a significant other about the gaudiness of the family fortune.
—Melvin Backman, Quartz, 19 Nov. 2024
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
See All Example Sentences for discursive
Joshua Barone, New York Times, 24 Dec. 2024
Their discursive subjects might include an elevator speech to prep a significant other about the gaudiness of the family fortune.
—Melvin Backman, Quartz, 19 Nov. 2024
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
See All Example Sentences for discursive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for discursive
Adjective
-
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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The old man who, with his grandson, kept that wandering tradition alive that left many of the Aiel ready to abandon the path laid out for them.—
Sean T. Collins,
Vulture,
20 Mar. 2025
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The album unfolds like the journal of a wandering young heart who rambles from town to town, from feeling to feeling, but without feeling connected anywhere.—
Rob Sheffield,
Rolling Stone,
21 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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The Iranians reportedly agreed to engage in indirect talks with the U.S., through mediators in Oman.—
Raja Krishnamoorthi,
MSNBC Newsweek,
9 Apr. 2025
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But a senior Iranian official said any negotiations would be indirect, with Oman acting as intermediary.—
Alexis Simendinger,
The Hill,
8 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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The novel is detailed, digressive, densely populated, dull at times (as life is) and capable of tracking the most minute shifts in emotional weather.—
MJ Franklin,
New York Times,
28 Mar. 2025
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His narratives often seem spontaneously discovered to the point of digressive fascination, yet his works and scenes of nonfiction are no less craftsmanlike or refined than his fictional ones.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
26 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Discursive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/discursive. Accessed 15 Apr. 2025.
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