change the subject

Idioms  

1. Deliberately talk about another topic, as in If someone asks you an embarrassing question, just change the subject. This term uses subject in the sense of “a topic of conversation,” a usage dating from the late 1500s.

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Example Sentences

“When leaders who are supposed to be allies go quiet or change the subject, it doesn’t feel theoretical. It feels like we are being left behind because we are being left behind.”

From Salon • Apr. 5, 2026

I tried to change the subject to something more mutually personal, such as how we like to spend our Saturdays, to avoid discussing if Judas really wasn’t such a bad guy after all.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 20, 2023

“So many folks I talk to in my life, when I tell them I am a hospice volunteer, they either say ‘I could never do that,’ or they grimace or change the subject quickly.

From Seattle Times • Oct. 20, 2023

When asked about Mr Trump, he tends to change the subject.

From BBC • Aug. 22, 2023

Anyway—back on the bus—I change the subject with Jonesy.

From "Popcorn" by Rob Harrell