Sidetracking

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. Causing attention or focus to move away from the main issue ; causing progress or action to be delayed or postponed
2. Shifting concentration away from the principal topic or task ; putting off or interrupting planned progress or development
3. Drawing minds or efforts aside from the central matter ; creating a delay or interruption in advancing a plan or objective

Etymology: "Sidetracking" is the present participle and gerund of "sidetrack," a compound of "side" and "track." The literal sense is plain enough: a railway "side track" was a short spur or siding that let a train leave the main line, so that another could pass or the first could wait out of the way. To sidetrack a train was to switch it onto that spur. The figurative use grew from that railway image. Moving a train off the main line halts or delays its journey, and English speakers applied the same idea to people and projects: a conversation, a plan or a person's attention could be diverted onto a side route and kept from its intended course. The sense of postponing or interrupting progress came directly from this transfer of meaning, so the word describes a derailment that is deliberate rather than accidental.

Synonyms: distracting, diverting

Antonyms: focusing