segue

American  

[say-gway, seg-way] / ˈseɪ gweɪ, ˈsɛg weɪ /

verb (used without object)

segued, segueing

1. to continue at once with the next musical section or composition (often used as a musical direction).

2. to perform in the manner of the preceding section (used as a musical direction).

3. to make a transition from one thing to another smoothly and without interruption.

   The conversation segued from travel anecdotes to food.

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noun

1. an uninterrupted transition made between one musical section or composition and another.

2. any smooth, uninterrupted transition from one thing to another.

segue British  

/ ˈsɛɡweɪ /

verb

1. (often foll by into) to proceed from one section or piece of music to another without a break

2. (imperative) play on without pause: a musical direction

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noun

1. the practice or an instance of playing music in this way

Etymology

Origin of segue

First recorded in 1850–55; from Italian: “(it) follows, (there) follows,” 3rd-person singular present of seguire “to follow,” ultimately from Latin sequī; see sue

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Explanation

A segue is a smooth transition. When you segue in conversation, you change the topic so smoothly that people might not even notice. A good speaker knows how to segue: they can get from one topic to another so easily that you hardly notice the topic changed. Comedians have the same skill as they segue from one joke to another, and politicians also learn the art of the segue. So do teachers. This is also a term in music for moving from one part of a piece to another. Remember that segue does not sound quite how it looks: it's pronounced "SEG-way."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

segue segued segueing

“If you look at your outfit and you say to yourself, ‘Oh, this will segue nicely to a sports bar, it's probably not the right outfit for the office.’”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 12, 2026

“War” segues into “Born In The USA,” a segue so simple but so brilliant it’s surprising it hasn’t happened before.

From Salon ● May 28, 2026

Rosalía used this as a perfect segue into her song La Perla, supposedly about her former fiancé Rauw Alejandro - with lyrics about a "terrorista emocional" whose proudest achievement is his collection of bras.

From BBC ● May 6, 2026

Likewise, the score by Tony Doogan leans too heavily on generic electronic thuds, the kind that segue into a commercial break cliffhanger and an ad for blood pressure medicine.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 23, 2026

Their easy give-and-take, comic timing, and ability to segue into heart-wrenching moments, like Peeta’s confession of love for me, have made them a huge success with the audience.

From "Catching Fire" by Suzanne Collins

“The idea that you could strike it rich in California with good luck and industry then segued into the fact that people like John Rockefeller and J.P. Morgan could strike it rich,” Brands says.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 16, 2026

But all that momentum for change stalled when, in 1917, the United States entered World War I and then segued to a postwar decade of speculative frenzy.

From Salon ● Jul. 30, 2025

The show began with a new-agey wash of ocean sounds, that segued seamlessly into her 2024 single, Training Season.

From BBC ● Jun. 20, 2025

As the chuckles subsided, Biden segued back to his prepared remarks by saying, “All kidding aside.”

From Slate ● Dec. 11, 2024

My brain hummed along as one thought segued into another.

From "Hole in My Life" by Jack Gantos

“EPiC” follows Presley as he blazes through classics including “Little Sister,” slyly asserting his influence in rock by segueing into the Beatles’ “Get Back.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 24, 2026

However, the tonal mismatch of segueing from a story about a family member’s coma to a soda tasting is notable and leads one to ask: Why is JD Vance being so weird about Mountain Dew?

From Salon ● Aug. 5, 2024

She emerges to ear-splitting screams, in a floral-print dress and towering heels, smouldering through the achingly cool A&W, before segueing into the ethereal Young and Beautiful.

From BBC ● Jul. 10, 2023

Simply put, the culprit has been an ongoing health issue — two of them, really; one segueing into the other seamlessly to create a hellish month of inactivity.

From Seattle Times ● May 31, 2023

Snow was falling in earnest now—big silent petals drifting through the springtime woods, white bouquets segueing into snowy dark: a nightmarish topsy-turvy land, something from a story book.

From "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt

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