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GRE vocabulary

discursive

adjectiveHigh-frequency wordMore D words

rambling and moving from topic to topic without order

Word origin: From Latin discurrere, to run about, from currere, to run.

In a sentence

Discursive in a sentence

Here are example sentences showing discursive in a sentence.

His discursive lectures wandered far from the announced subject.

The memoir is charming but discursive, wandering through decades with little regard for chronology.

Synonyms
ramblingdigressivemeandering
Antonyms
Usage & nuance

Using “discursive” well

Discursive describes writing or speech that rambles from topic to topic, pairing with digressive and meandering. In philosophy it has a separate, neutral sense (proceeding by reasoning), but the rambling sense dominates on the GRE.

Common questions

Questions about “discursive

Discursive (adjective) means rambling and moving from topic to topic without order
Here is discursive used in an example sentence: "His discursive lectures wandered far from the announced subject." Another example: "The memoir is charming but discursive, wandering through decades with little regard for chronology."
Common synonyms for discursive include rambling, digressive, meandering.
Antonyms of discursive include concise, focused, succinct.
Clusters with rambling, digressive, and meandering in Sentence Equivalence. Antonyms concise, focused, and succinct describe tight, orderly expression.
Yes. Discursive is a high-frequency GRE word, so it is worth prioritising as you build your vocabulary.

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