脇道(わきみち)

わきみち
noun
side road, digression
geographycommunication
1. side road, side street, byway
A smaller road branching off from the main road.
脇道(わきみち)に入(はい)った。
I turned into a side street.
大通(おおどお)りを避(さ)けて脇道(わきみち)を歩(ある)いた。
I avoided the main street and walked along a side road.
脇道(わきみち)にそれたおかげで素敵(すてき)なカフェを見(み)つけた。
Thanks to taking a side road, I found a lovely café.
2. digression, tangent, sidetrack
A departure from the main topic or the primary course of action. Often used with にそれる to describe straying off topic.
話(はなし)が脇道(わきみち)にそれた。
The conversation went off on a tangent.
脇道(わきみち)にそれずに本題(ほんだい)に集中(しゅうちゅう)しよう。
Let's focus on the main topic without going off on tangents.
先生(せんせい)の講義(こうぎ)はよく脇道(わきみち)にそれるが、それが面白(おもしろ)い。
The professor's lectures often go off on tangents, but that's what makes them interesting.

Usage

The figurative sense (digression) is very common. The key pattern is 脇道(わきみち)にそれる (to stray off onto a side road / to digress). This expression works both literally (taking a physical detour) and figuratively (going off topic).

Common collocations

  • 脇道(わきみち)にそれる: to go off on a tangent, to digress
  • 脇道(わきみち)に入(はい)る: to turn onto a side road
  • 脇道(わきみち)を通(とお)る: to take a side road

Related Words

Related: 裏通(うらどお)り (back street, side street)
general
Added 2026.2.27 16:46 · Revised 2026.9.2 13:01
13500/13943_wakimichi