divert/distract attention
idiom
: to try to keep people from noticing or thinking about something
He was trying to divert/distract attention away from his friend's mistake.
Examples of divert/distract attention in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
And even the Zoom call was kept private until after the polls closed, at the request of Wisconsin Democrats, who feared that reports of her involvement would divert attention from Elon Musk, the overriding target of the Democratic campaign.
—
New York Times, Mercury News, 13 Apr. 2025
If the underlying agenda is to highlight a specific topic, briefly state your facts and divert attention to a different topic.
—Lieke Ten Brummelhuis, Forbes, 20 Feb. 2025
The Houthis are a mere distraction to divert attention and military resources, whereas Russia and Iran are the main concern.
—Jonathan Sweet and Mark Toth, The Hill, 20 Mar. 2025
Schumer torched both Trump and the continuing resolution (CR) in an NYT op-ed explaining his decision but argued that Trump would only seize more power in a shutdown and distract attention from the policy failures that are hurting his popularity.
—Dave Lawler, Axios, 15 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for divert/distract attention
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New York Times, Mercury News, 13 Apr. 2025
If the underlying agenda is to highlight a specific topic, briefly state your facts and divert attention to a different topic.
—Lieke Ten Brummelhuis, Forbes, 20 Feb. 2025
The Houthis are a mere distraction to divert attention and military resources, whereas Russia and Iran are the main concern.
—Jonathan Sweet and Mark Toth, The Hill, 20 Mar. 2025
Schumer torched both Trump and the continuing resolution (CR) in an NYT op-ed explaining his decision but argued that Trump would only seize more power in a shutdown and distract attention from the policy failures that are hurting his popularity.
—Dave Lawler, Axios, 15 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for divert/distract attention
Cite this Entry
“Divert/distract attention.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/divert%2Fdistract%20attention. Accessed 24 Apr. 2025.
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