to deviate or wander away from the main topic or purpose in speaking or writing; depart from the principal line of argument, plot, study, etc.

Archaic . to turn aside.

verb

be direct , stay

verb

aberrate , beat about the bush , be diffuse , circumlocute , depart , divagate , drift , excurse , get off the point , get off the subject , get sidetracked , go by way of , go off on a tangent , long way , meander , ramble , roam , swerve , turn aside , veer , wander , wander away , diverge , stray , deviate , detour , divaricate , parenthesize , shift