discursive

[ dih-skur-siv ]

/ dɪˈskɜr sɪv /

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See synonyms for: discursive / discursively / discursiveness on Thesaurus.com

adjective

passing aimlessly from one subject to another; digressive; rambling.

proceeding by reasoning or argument rather than intuition.

OTHER WORDS FOR discursive

1 wandering, long-winded, prolix.

See synonyms for discursive on Thesaurus.com

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Origin of discursive

From the Medieval Latin word discursīvus, dating back to 1590–1600. See discourse, -ive

OTHER WORDS FROM discursive

dis·cur·sive·ly, adverbdis·cur·sive·ness, nounnon·dis·cur·sive, adjectivenon·dis·cur·sive·ly, adverb

non·dis·cur·sive·ness, noun

Words nearby discursive

discriminative, discriminator, discriminatory, discrown, discursion, discursive, discus, discuss, discussant, discussed, discussion

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

How to use discursive in a sentence

Buterin, who gave two talks, has a discursive and often highly theoretical talking style, making it difficult to pull out specific and succinct theses from his speeches.
Politicians Show Their Increasing Interest In Crypto at ETHDenver 2022|Andrew R. Chow|February 24, 2022|Time
“Conversational intelligence is the constellation of features and technologies that enable humans and machines to take turns exchanging language and work toward accomplishing a discursive goal,” says Bennett.
Building customer relationships with conversational AI|Martha Leibs|March 29, 2021|MIT Technology Review
The questions linger throughout this at times maddeningly discursive novel.
The Essential Norman Mailer: Remedial Reader|Ronald K. Fried|October 4, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Now Intelligence possesses them by thought, a thought which is not discursive (but intuitive).
Plotinos: Complete Works, v. 3|Plotinos (Plotinus)

Yet the impulse to discursive commentary must be checked, for plucking flowers is a distraction from comparative botany.
Vie de Bohme|Orlo Williams
The discursive faculty then becomes what our Shakespeare, with happy precision, calls "discourse of reason."
Aids to Reflection|Samuel Taylor Coleridge
Who is more discursive than the Autocrat, the Czar of table-talkers; and whose productions are more charming or wiser?
The Continental Monthly, Vol. 2, No. 2, August, 1862|Various
The evidence of such principles is established by a long and discursive psychological discussion.
The English Utilitarians, Volume I.|Leslie Stephen

British Dictionary definitions for discursive

discursive

/ (dɪˈskɜːsɪv) /

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 intuitionCompare dianoetic

Derived forms of discursive

discursively, adverbdiscursiveness, noun

Word Origin for discursive

C16: from Medieval Latin discursīvus, from Late Latin discursus discourse

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

discursive

OTHER WORDS FOR discursive

Origin of discursive

OTHER WORDS FROM discursive

Words nearby discursive

Words related to discursive

How to use discursive in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for discursive

Derived forms of discursive

Word Origin for discursive