discursive
Americanadjective
-
passing aimlessly from one subject to another; digressive; rambling.
- Synonyms:
- prolix, long-winded, wandering
-
proceeding by reasoning or argument rather than intuition.
adjective
-
passing from one topic to another, usually in an unmethodical way; digressive
-
philosophy of or relating to knowledge obtained by reason and argument rather than intuition Compare dianoetic
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of discursive
From the Medieval Latin word discursīvus, dating back to 1590–1600. See discourse, -ive
Explanation
If people accuse you of rambling from topic to topic in your speech or writing, they may say you have a discursive style — with changes in subject that are hard to follow. But it's okay because unicorns are shiny. The adjective discursive is often used to describe speech or writing that tends to stray from the main point, but the word can also have almost the opposite meaning. Discursive can also be used to describe an argument based on reason instead of intuition: "Her discursive dissertation on Colonial American women was well-argued and well-reasoned. Her professors were most impressed with her work."
Vocabulary lists containing discursive
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Make a Run for It: Cur, Curs
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Some storylines do emerge from the discursive dialogue.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 22, 2026
The coin of the realm on such shows is small-talk riffing and discursive, big-ideas bullshitting, and he excelled at neither.
From Slate ● Sep. 18, 2025
Fans of Nunez’s tartly discursive yet flowing novel will likely miss the snap of its critical observations on literary mind-sets and whatnot.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 4, 2025
What changed in the years since the beginning of the #MeToo movement is the presumption that strong enough discursive pushback might indeed lead to actual banishment.
From New York Times ● Mar. 2, 2024
It should be obvious that facts can both be unquestionable and only have meaning within certain discursive conventions: e.g.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
