train of thought

1. A succession of connected ideas, a path of reasoning, as in You've interrupted my train of thought; now what was I saying? This idiom, which uses train in the sense of “an orderly sequence,” was first recorded in 1651, in philosopher Thomas Hobbes's Leviathan.

Example Sentences

There is a train of thought that Scottish football, for all its drama, intrigue and excitement, wasn't always the best quality.

From BBC

Another seemingly innocuous cartoon shows a man at his desk sighing, "My train of thought has derailed."

From BBC

While talking about his sophomore album, “Kansas Anymore,” Pillsbury suddenly lost his train of thought and, through his phone’s camera, a panicked smile takes over his typically sarcastic composure.

From Los Angeles Times

Little was made of Trump’s continual garbling of sentences and loss of train of thought and his incredible barrage of lies, while the press put under a microscope every syllable uttered by Kamala Harris.

From Salon

The so-called weave is now being used to rationalize his inability to keep a single train of thought or give a straight answer in an interview:

From Salon

Related Words

• acumen 
• analysis 
• argument 
• hypothesis 
• inference 
• interpretation 
• premise 
• proposition 
• rationale 
• thinking