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1(geometry) a straight line that touches the outside of a curve but does not cross it
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- 2(abbreviation tan) (mathematics) the ratio of the length of the side opposite an angle in a right triangle to the length of the side next to it compare cosine, sine Idioms
to suddenly start saying or doing something that does not seem to be connected to what has gone before He never sticks to the point but keeps going off on a tangent.
Check pronunciation: tangent