as in tangent
a statement that is not connected in a logical or clear way to anything said before it
We were talking about the new restaurant when she threw in some non sequitur about her dog.
Related Words
Relevance
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of non sequitur
The non sequitur sends Grace into arpeggios of laughter, but once Dylan is out of earshot, Grace discloses to me that she’s begun to regard Dylan as one of her own children.
—
Barrett Swanson, Harper's Magazine, 2 Jan. 2025
Economists were trafficking in non sequitur while at the same time glossing over the fact that work divided looms largest on prices.
—John Tamny, Forbes, 15 Dec. 2024
The ornery character actor Richard Kind is his announcer, barking non sequiturs from behind a podium.
—David Sims, The Atlantic, 7 Apr. 2025
Because this performance more easily could prove a non sequitur as revealing in any way.
—Vahe Gregorian, Kansas City Star, 28 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for non sequitur
Barrett Swanson, Harper's Magazine, 2 Jan. 2025
Economists were trafficking in non sequitur while at the same time glossing over the fact that work divided looms largest on prices.
—John Tamny, Forbes, 15 Dec. 2024
The ornery character actor Richard Kind is his announcer, barking non sequiturs from behind a podium.
—David Sims, The Atlantic, 7 Apr. 2025
Because this performance more easily could prove a non sequitur as revealing in any way.
—Vahe Gregorian, Kansas City Star, 28 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for non sequitur
Recent Examples of Synonyms for non sequitur
Noun
-
Information, as a result, becomes abstracted into tangents.—
Shirley Li,
The Atlantic,
18 July 2025
-
For nearly an hour, Trump rambled about multiple topics his administration has tackled so far, ranging from tariffs to transgender people in sports while veering into tangents about his previous legal battles and first administration.—
Lalee Ibssa,
ABC News,
14 July 2025
Noun
-
While praised by real-life doctors for being one of the more accurate medical shows, Scrubs still made room for plenty of silly, lighthearted nonsense.—
James Mercadante,
EW.com,
21 July 2025
-
In that case, this is a lot of nonsense over something that just won’t arise.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
19 July 2025
Noun
-
The names of previous detainees were carved onto the mental bunks.—
Juwayriah Wright,
Time,
15 July 2025
-
He was told to sit on his bunk for the count, an interminable process that involved tallying every prisoner on the farm, from the men locked down in solitary cells to those wrangling cattle in far‑flung fields.—
Literary Hub
July 8,
Literary Hub,
8 July 2025
Noun
-
Amid the absurdity, the women slowly chip away at each other’s defences – finding unexpected friendship, meaning, and a strange kind of freedom.—
Georg Szalai,
HollywoodReporter,
8 July 2025
-
The set piece is exhilarating, not exhausting, and the heightened absurdity of it all is part of the fun.—
Jim Hemphill,
IndieWire,
3 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Non sequitur.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/non%20sequitur. Accessed 30 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share