What is a tangential issue?
(tændʒɛnʃəl ) adjective. If you describe something as tangential, you mean that it has only a slight or indirect connection with the thing you are concerned with, and is therefore not worth considering seriously. [formal] Too much time was spent discussing tangential issues.
What does it mean when something is tangential?
Definition of tangential 1a : touching lightly : incidental, peripheral tangential involvement also : of little relevance arguments tangential to the main point. b : divergent, digressive. 2 : of, relating to, or of the nature of a tangent. 3 : acting along or lying in a tangent tangential forces.
What is a tangential idea?
Tangential describes something that’s not part of the whole. If you make a comment that is tangential to the story you’re telling, it’s a digression. The story could still be understood without it. In geometry, a tangent is a line that touches a curve in one spot but doesn’t intersect it anywhere else.
What is an example of Tangentiality?
Examples of Tangentiality For example, when a therapist poses the question, “How was your week?” a person may respond with, “When I was five, my cat was killed.” When the therapist asks about the cat the person may then begin to discuss something completely different such as religious beliefs or previous illnesses.
What is tangential thought process?
Tangentiality refers to a disturbance in the thought process that causes the individual to relate excessive or irrelevant detail that results in never reaching the essential point of a conversation or the desired answer to a question.
What does tangential mean in medical terms?
tan·gen·ti·al·i·ty. (tan-jen’shē-al’i-tē) A disturbance in the associative thought process in which one tends to digress readily from one topic under discussion to other topics that arise in the course of associations; observed in bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and certain types of organic brain disorders.
What is opposite of tangential?
Antonyms: relevant. Synonyms: discursive, digressive, excursive, rambling.
What is the difference between Circumstantiality and tangentiality?
Circumstantiality: The speech is long and includes many words and (irrelevant) details; the person takes quite long to get to the point. This differs from tangentiality in which the person never gets to the point. Loss of goal: There is difficulty in maintaining the point of the answer.
What is the medical definition of tangential thinking?
tan·gen·ti·al·i·ty. (tan-jen’shē-al’i-tē) A disturbance in the associative thought process in which one tends to digress readily from one topic under discussion to other topics that arise in the course of associations; observed in bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and certain types of organic brain disorders.
Why was there too much time spent discussing tangential issues?
Too much time was spent discussing tangential issues. They thought the whole thing was a side-show, tangential to the real world of business. If something is tangential to something else, it is at a tangent to it. …the street tangential to the courthouse square.
What does it mean when someone has extreme tangentiality?
Tangentiality. However, extreme tangentiality may indicate a mental health condition. People experiencing mental health conditions may be so focused on their own internal dialogue that they are unable to focus on conversation or questions; in some cases, their internal dialogues may prevent them from understanding conversation.
Which is the best definition of the word tangent?
tan·gen·tial | tan-ˈjen(t)-shəl . 1a : touching lightly : incidental, peripheral tangential involvement also : of little relevance arguments tangential to the main point. b : divergent, digressive. 2 : of, relating to, or of the nature of a tangent.