sidetracked

[sahyd-trakt]

adjective

1. distracted from the main subject, task, course, etc..

   Sorry for not replying sooner—I’m an easily sidetracked guy with poor time management.

2. (of a train) moved from the main track to a siding, where it stops temporarily.

   Rail officials agreed to move a sidetracked train after local residents complained of the noise, fumes, and vibrations.

verb

1. the simple past tense and past participle of sidetrack.

Word History and Origins

Origin of sidetracked¹

First recorded in 1880–85; sidetrack ( def. ) + -ed ² ( def. ) for the adjective senses; sidetrack ( def. ) + -ed ¹ ( def. ) for the verb sense

Example Sentences

A third said they migrated to the U.S. to further their education but got sidetracked as business opportunities arose, and 20% said they had hoped to achieve the American dream through work opportunities.

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This, of course, means he can also get easily sidetracked, but it’s “one of the beauties of making music on your own.”

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"My ambition was not to be a music photographer, my ambition was to be a war photographer - but I got a sidetracked in a great way," he says.

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But now, that focus isn’t being sidetracked by worries about his body, or limitations to his “bowl.”

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“He had the ambition and the drive to do something great and not get sidetracked or settle for less,” says Campbell.

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Related Words

• aground 
• ashore 
• grounded 
• helpless 
• wrecked