Dictionary.com

digress

[ dih-gres, dahy- ]
/ dɪˈgrɛs, daɪ- /
Save This Word!

verb (used without object)
to deviate or wander away from the main topic or purpose in speaking or writing; depart from the principal line of argument, plot, study, etc.
Archaic. to turn aside.
QUIZ
ALL IN FAVO(U)R OF THIS BRITISH VS. AMERICAN ENGLISH QUIZ
There's an ocean of difference between the way people speak English in the US vs. the UK. Are your language skills up to the task of telling the difference? Let's find out!
Question 1 of 7
True or false? British English and American English are only different when it comes to slang words.

Origin of digress

1520–30; <Latin dīgressus, past participle of dīgredī “to go off, depart, digress,” equivalent to dī- di-2 + -gredī, combining form of gradī “to go”; cf. grade

synonym study for digress

1. See deviate.

OTHER WORDS FROM digress

di·gress·er, noundi·gress·ing·ly, adverbre·di·gress, verb (used without object)

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH digress

digress , diverge
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use digress in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for digress

digress
/ (daɪˈɡrɛs) /

verb (intr)
to depart from the main subject in speech or writing
to wander from one's path or main direction

Derived forms of digress

digresser, noun

Word Origin for digress

C16: from Latin dīgressus turned aside, from dīgredī, from dis- apart + gradī to go
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
FEEDBACK