{"id":1236,"date":"2022-01-20T20:49:18","date_gmt":"2022-01-20T20:49:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/?p=1236"},"modified":"2022-01-20T20:50:11","modified_gmt":"2022-01-20T20:50:11","slug":"i-digress-meaning","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/i-digress-meaning\/","title":{"rendered":"I Digress - Meaning, Origin and Usage"},"content":{"rendered":"

Are you talking to someone and find yourself going off-topic? If that\u2019s the case, you could always get the conversation back on track by using the \u201cI digress<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

This post unpacks the origin and meaning of this idiomatic expression.<\/p>\n

I Digress Meaning<\/h2>\n

The meaning of \u201cto digress<\/em>\u201d is to take the conversation off-topic to a tangent. You\u2019ll use the phrase when you realize you\u2019ve been talking for some time about a topic that has nothing to do with the original conversation.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Using \u201cI digress<\/em>\u201d helps you pull your train of thought away from the tangent, focusing it back on the original topic of conversation.<\/p>\n

Typically, you\u2019ll be answering someone\u2019s question or query, and you\u2019ll find that they are starting to lose interest in what you\u2019re saying, and you\u2019ll drop \u201cI digress<\/em>\u201d to capture their attention, steering the conversation back on track.<\/p>\n

When you use the phrase \u201cbut I digress<\/em>,\u201d you\u2019re saying you intend to get things back on topic. So, if you use \u201cbut I digress<\/em>,\u201d you might be voicing an unpopular opinion, and it\u2019s another way of saying that these opinions are your own, and no one has to agree with you.<\/p>\n

Many people become frustrated with using the phrase because they never digress back to the original topic but instead use the term to end the conversation.<\/p>\n

I Digress Example Usage<\/h2>\n

\u201cI was thinking about how I should eat more vegetables to get healthy, but I digress;<\/em> I don\u2019t think there\u2019s anything wrong with eating a carnivore diet.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI digress<\/em> here to pay respects to the fallen. However, I don\u2019t want to digress from the many valid points in this discussion.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMy aunt Julia would use Seville oranges when making marmalade at home. I digress<\/em>; I think that sweeter oranges are the way to go when making the preserve.\u201d<\/p>\n

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I Digress Origin<\/h2>\n

The word \u201cdigress<\/em>\u201d has origins extending back to the 1500s. The word changed in the early 1500s, and by 1530, it had the definition of \u201cto veer off-topic<\/em>,\u201d and it retains that meaning in modern language. Digress comes from Latin origins and shares the same root as other words like \u201caggressive<\/em>,\u201d \u201cgradient<\/em>,\u201d and \u201cprogress<\/em>.\u201d The root translates to \u201cto step away<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

The phrase \u201cbut I digress<\/em>\u201d first appeared in the mid-19th century, where people would use it to get their conversation back on track after taking a tangent away from its original purpose and intent. \u201cI digress<\/em>\u201d is a common expression in modern language, and it usually features as \u201cbut I digress<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

Some writers use it as a humorous statement, using the phrase to redirect their story back to its original path after taking a tangent to explain other related incidents affecting the storyline. You\u2019ll find \u201cbut I digress<\/em>\u201d in frequent use in modern pop culture.<\/p>\n