change the subject

change the subject

To introduce a different topic of discussion, usually intentionally. I changed the subject after that last remark made Jeff and Bill visibly tense. Don't try to change the subject—I know one of you kids dented my car!

See also: change, subject

change the subject

to begin talking about something different. They changed the subject suddenly when the person whom they had been discussing entered the room. We'll change the subject if we are embarrassing you.

See also: change, subject

change the subject

Deliberately talk about another topic, as in If someone asks you an embarrassing question, just change the subject. This term uses subject in the sense of "a topic of conversation," a usage dating from the late 1500s.

See also: change, subject

change the ˈsubject

start to talk about something different, especially because what was being discussed was embarrassing or difficult to talk about: I don’t like talking about the war. Can’t we change the subject?

See also: change, subject