Digresses

Digresses is the third-person singular present tense of the verb digress. To digress means to depart briefly from the main subject in speaking or writing. Etymology traces the term to Latin digressus, the past participle of digredi, meaning to go away, from dis- “apart” + gradi “to go.”

In usage, digressions can be intentional or inadvertent and appear in speech, essays, novels, journalism, and lectures. They often introduce related background, anecdote, or commentary before returning to the main topic. Digressions can enrich a narrative by providing context, illustrating a point with a concrete example, or establishing voice and tone. Conversely, they can interrupt flow and reduce clarity in formal writing if they are lengthy or off topic.

Writers commonly signal a digression with transitional cues such as “to digress for a moment,” “that aside,” or “before returning to the main point.” The practice is contrasted with staying on topic; excessive or poorly managed digressions may frustrate readers or listeners. The noun form digression denotes the digressive passage itself.

Digresses is used in reference to a subject performing the action of digressing, for example: “The author digresses here to provide historical context.” The concept of digression is widely discussed in rhetoric and literary analysis as a stylistic and narrative device, with varying views on its usefulness depending on context and execution.