sidetrack

[ sahyd-trak ]

verb (used with or without object)

1. to move or distract from the main subject or course.
2. to move from the main track to a siding, as a train.

noun

1. any railroad track, other than a siding, that is auxiliary to the main track.
2. a path, position, project, topic, etc., of less importance than the main one:

   On a sidetrack to this thread on workplace safety, let me just say a little about office footwear.

sidetrack

/ ˈsaɪdˌtræk /

verb

1. to distract or be distracted from a main subject or topic

noun

1. a railway siding
2. the act or an instance of sidetracking; digression

Word History and Origins

Origin of sidetrack¹

An Americanism dating back to 1825–35; side ¹ + track

Example Sentences

Though the dollar amounts in most of the cases involving Ochoa are not large, for fledgling operators trying to break into the mobile food industry — many of them working-class immigrants — it’s enough to sidetrack their business dreams.

From Los Angeles Times

Public response can help sidetrack a man who would be king, on “day one” and beyond.

From Salon

Public response can help sidetrack a man who would be king, on “day one” and beyond.

From Salon

House gridlock threatens to sidetrack a critical defense policy bill — the National Defense Authorization Act.

From Seattle Times

“But if you just focus on the work and you don’t let those people sidetrack you, someday when you get where you are going, you’ll look around and you will know that it was you and the people who love you who put you there and that will be the greatest feeling in the world.”

From Los Angeles Times