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Meaning & use

I digress

phrase·Advancedformalhumorous

Last updated

UK/aɪ daɪˈɡres/
US/aɪ daɪˈɡres/

Meaning

  1. phrasefixed phrasehumorous

    Something a speaker says to admit they have drifted away from their main subject and are about to return to it.

    Grammar: A complete sentence with no object; it stands alone: ...but I digress.

    Patterns

    • but I digress
    • anyway, I digress

    That café has the best pastries in town, and the owner used to be a pilot, but I digress.

    I once met the author at a book fair. Anyway, I digress.

    Where was I? Ah yes, the budget. Sorry, I digress.

Common combinations

but I digress
The soup was lovely, and my aunt made it, but I digress.
sorry, I digress
Sorry, I digress; let's get back to the report.
anyway, I digress
Anyway, I digress; the meeting starts at ten.
I digress slightly
I digress slightly, but the same thing happened to me.

Synonyms and how they differ

anyway
Anyway is a plain, everyday way to return to the topic, but it does not openly admit you strayed.
to get back to the point
This phrase is neutral and practical, whereas I digress sounds more witty and self-aware.
I'm going off on a tangent
This is more casual and describes the detour as it happens, while I digress usually comes after it.

Word family

digress verb
to move away from the main subject while speaking or writing
digression noun
a part of a talk or text that wanders off the point
digressive adjective
tending to wander from the topic

Commonly confused: I digress or regress? I digress or digest?

I digress vs regress

Regress means to go back to an earlier or worse state, not to wander off topic.

I digress vs digest

Digest as a verb means to break down food or take in information; it is unrelated to wandering from a topic.

Practice

The teacher paused in her story about a school trip and said, "But ___. Let's return to today's lesson."

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