Meaning & use
tangentially
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Meaning
adverbnot comparable
In a way that touches a subject only at the edges, without being a central or direct part of it.
Grammar: Usually sits before an adjective or past participle: tangentially related, not related tangentially.
Patterns
- tangentially related to something
- tangentially involved in something
- mention something tangentially
The witness was only tangentially involved in the dispute, so the lawyer dropped her questions quickly.
He mentioned the budget tangentially, then returned to the main topic of the meeting.
Her research touches tangentially on climate policy, but its real focus is soil chemistry.
Common combinations
- tangentially related
- The two studies are only tangentially related, so you cannot compare their results.
- tangentially connected
- The charity is tangentially connected to the hospital through a shared donor.
- touch tangentially on
- The speaker touched tangentially on housing before moving to transport.
- tangentially relevant
- That detail is tangentially relevant at best, so I would cut it.
- mention something tangentially
- She mentioned the lawsuit tangentially, as if it hardly mattered.
Synonyms and how they differ
- indirectly
- Indirectly stresses a roundabout path from cause to effect, while tangentially stresses how far a topic sits from the centre of an argument.
- peripherally
- Peripherally also means at the edge, but it is more often used for people or activities on the margins of a group than for ideas.
- remotely
- Remotely suggests a very faint link and is usually used in negatives, as in not remotely related, whereas tangentially admits some real contact.
- incidentally
- Incidentally introduces a side remark in passing, while tangentially describes how loosely something connects to the main point.
Opposites
Word family
- tangent noun
- a line touching a curve at one point, or a sudden shift to a side topic
- tangential adjective
- only slightly connected to the main subject
- tangentiality noun
- the quality of being only loosely connected
Commonly confused: tangentially or tangibly?
tangentially vs tangibly
Tangibly means in a way that can be touched or clearly felt, such as tangibly improved; it has nothing to do with side connections.
Practice
Which sentence uses tangentially correctly?
Choose one answer.
Tangentially means in a loosely connected way, which fits a report whose main subject is something else. The other sentences use it where no idea of side connection makes sense.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “tangentially”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.