First recorded in 1350–1400.
Comes via Middle English from the Latin word tortuōsus, which derives from the verb torquēre, “to twist, bend.”
Sign up for more Word of the Day!

\r\nEXAMPLES OF TORTUOUS\r\n

The tortuous road through the mountains made for a challenging but scenic drive.
The author's writing style was known for its elegant prose and tortuous plot twists.

\r\nIt's National Poetry Month, and we’ve created a challenge that really is for everyone. Submit now!","audio":"https://static.sfdict.com/audio/T03/T0390200.mp3","definitions":[{"partofspeech":"adjective","data":"full of twists, turns, or bends; twisting, winding, or crooked."}],"examples":[],"imageUrl":"https://www.dictionary.com/e/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/tortuous_IG.png","accentColor":"#0063D7"}},"status":"succeeded"}},"meta":{"requestId":"01ltbmqvVf0KEFQSb5D3-","requestStatus":"fulfilled"}},{"type":"fetchWordsNearby/fulfilled","payload":{"data":{"before":[{"slug":"chemulpo","entry":"Chemulpo"},{"slug":"chemurgy","entry":"chemurgy"},{"slug":"ch-en","entry":"Ch'en"},{"slug":"chenab","entry":"Chenab"},{"slug":"chen-chiang","entry":"Chen-chiang"}],"after":[{"slug":"cheneau","entry":"cheneau"},{"slug":"cheney","entry":"Cheney"},{"slug":"chengchow","entry":"Chengchow"},{"slug":"chengde","entry":"Chengde"},{"slug":"chengdu","entry":"Chengdu"}]}},"meta":{"arg":{"word":"chen-duxiu"},"requestId":"pqdfIsqD6V0zuLISKXs6E","requestStatus":"fulfilled"}},{"type":"luna/fetchExampleSentences/fulfilled","payload":{"data":{"tdb":[],"gbg":[]}},"meta":{"arg":{"word":"chen-duxiu"},"requestId":"cckoCbeSevaHq-fHqN8fA","requestStatus":"fulfilled"}},{"type":"fetchDictionaryResults/fulfilled","payload":{"slugs":[{"entries":[{"__typename":"Entry","audioPronunciations":[{"mpeg":"https://nonprod-audio.dictionary.com/C03/C0370900/C0370900.mp3"}],"confusableNotes":[],"genderNotes":[],"grammarNotes":[],"headword":{"displayForm":"Chen Duxiu","slug":"chen-duxiu"},"idioms":[],"orderKey":99999010,"ordinal":10,"origin":null,"partOfSpeechBlock":[{"definitions":[{"antonymsConnection":{"edges":[]},"definitionSetChunks":"[{\"text\": \"1879\\u20131942,\", \"type\": \"date\"}, {\"type\": \"def\", \"children\": [{\"text\": \"Chinese intellectual, journalist, and cofounder of the Chinese Communist Party.\", \"type\": \"text\"}]}]","examples":[],"ordinal":1,"subdefinitions":[],"synonymsConnection":{"edges":[]}}],"inflectionSets":[],"labelSet":null,"ordinal":1,"partOfSpeech":"noun"}],"pronunciationNotes":[],"pronunciationSet":{"pronunciationSetChunk":"{\"type\": \"pronunciation_set\", \"pointsTo\": \"u3bb48a285cbafaf0.-3bc55cee.14d9e5ffd4b.139b\", \"pronunciationGroupChunks\": [{\"type\": \"pronunciation_group\", \"pointsTo\": \"u3bb48a285cbafaf0.-3bc55cee.14d9e5ffd4b.139c\", \"ipaChunks\": [{\"text\": \"\\u02c8d\\u0292\\u028cn \\u02c8du\\u02c8\\u0283yu\", \"type\": \"text\", \"pointsTo\": \"u1d12ccc8b4c7be82.4ec6689c.17fd01503d1.4c5f\"}], \"spellChunks\": [{\"text\": \"juhn\", \"type\": \"bold\", \"pointsTo\": \"u1d12ccc8b4c7be82.4ec6689c.17fd01503d1.4c61\"}, {\"text\": \" \", \"type\": \"text\"}, {\"text\": \"doo\", \"type\": \"bold\", \"pointsTo\": \"u1d12ccc8b4c7be82.4ec6689c.17fd01503d1.4c62\"}, {\"text\": \"-\", \"type\": \"text\"}, {\"text\": \"shyoo\", \"type\": \"bold\", \"pointsTo\": \"u1d12ccc8b4c7be82.4ec6689c.17fd01503d1.4c63\"}]}]}"},"relatedFormSets":[],"sensitiveNotes":[],"spellingNotes":[],"synonymStudy":[],"usageAlerts":[],"usageNotes":[],"variants":[],"verbPhrases":[]}],"url":"chen-duxiu"}]},"meta":{"arg":{"slug":"chen-duxiu"},"requestId":"Svd2K_e3774BPLS9x-2UJ","requestStatus":"fulfilled"}},{"type":"fetchResultsData/fulfilled","payload":{"data":{"url":"chen-duxiu","displayForm":"Chen Duxiu","canonicalSlug":"chen-duxiu","content":[{"source":"luna","entries":[{"id":"u3bb48a285cbafaf0.-3bc55cee.14d9e5ffd4b.1395","type":"normal","entry":"Chen Duxiu","entrySyllabified":"Chen Du·xiu","entryVariants":[],"homograph":null,"pronunciation":{"ipa":"ˈdʒʌn ˈduˈʃyu ","spell":"juhn-doo-shyoo ","audio":{"audio/ogg":"https://static.sfdict.com/audio/lunawav/C03/C0370900.ogg","audio/mpeg":"https://static.sfdict.com/audio/C03/C0370900.mp3"}},"predefinitionContent":"","posBlocks":[{"definitions":[{"order":1,"type":"simple","predefinitionContent":"1879–1942,","postdefinitionContent":"","definition":"Chinese intellectual, journalist, and cofounder of the Chinese Communist Party.","synonyms":"","antonyms":"","cites":[]}],"pos":"noun","posSupplementaryInfo":""}],"origin":null,"originData":null,"supplementaryNotes":[],"variantForms":[],"variantSpellings":["Also (Wade-Giles) Ch'en Tu-hsiu

[chuhn-doo-shyoo] /ˈtʃʌn ˈduˈʃyu/ ."],"referenceData":[],"relatedForms":[],"confusables":[]}]}],"nearbyWordOrdinal":28508,"index-rank-01":["chen duxiu"],"index-rank-02":[],"index-rank-03":["ch'en tu-hsiu"],"index-rank-04":["chen duxiu's"],"index-rank-05":["ch'en tu-hsiu's"],"index-rank-06":[],"index-rank-07":[],"index-rank-08":[],"index-rank-09":[],"index-rank-10":[],"index-rank-11":["ch'en tu hsiu","ch'en tuhsiu","chen tu hsiu","chen tu-hsiu","chen tuhsiu"],"index-rank-12":[],"index-rank-13":[],"index-rank-14":[],"index-rank-15":[],"tunaSlug":null,"isFeaturedMetaSlug":false}},"meta":{"arg":{"word":"chen-duxiu"},"requestId":"XULjPUhd1mIKDvPU0I8mn","requestStatus":"fulfilled"}},{"type":"fetchSpellSuggestions/fulfilled","payload":{"data":{"luna":["Ch'en","Cheb","CHE","ChE","Cen","hen","Cohen","Chin","chin","chon","Cher","cher","chew","Caen","Chet","Coen","chef","chez","then","when","chex","chem-","chem.","cen.","Ch'an","Ch'in","Chan.","Chin.","ch'in","ch","Ch.E.","chmn.","Ches."],"tuna":["hen","chin","cher","chew","chef","then","when"],"lunaWithSlug":[{"displayForm":"Ch'en","slug":"ch-en"},{"displayForm":"Cheb","slug":"cheb"},{"displayForm":"CHE","slug":"che"},{"displayForm":"ChE","slug":"che"},{"displayForm":"hen","slug":"hen"},{"displayForm":"Cohen","slug":"cohen"},{"displayForm":"Chin","slug":"chin"},{"displayForm":"chin","slug":"chin"},{"displayForm":"chon","slug":"chon"},{"displayForm":"Cher","slug":"cher"},{"displayForm":"cher","slug":"cher"},{"displayForm":"chew","slug":"chew"},{"displayForm":"Caen","slug":"caen"},{"displayForm":"Chet","slug":"chet"},{"displayForm":"Coen","slug":"coen"},{"displayForm":"chef","slug":"chef"},{"displayForm":"chez","slug":"chez"},{"displayForm":"then","slug":"then"},{"displayForm":"when","slug":"when"},{"displayForm":"chex","slug":"chex"},{"displayForm":"chem-","slug":"chem-"},{"displayForm":"chem.","slug":"chem-"},{"displayForm":"cen.","slug":"cen"},{"displayForm":"Ch'an","slug":"ch-an"},{"displayForm":"Ch'in","slug":"chin"},{"displayForm":"Chan.","slug":"ch-an"},{"displayForm":"Chin.","slug":"chin"},{"displayForm":"ch'in","slug":"chin"},{"displayForm":"ch","slug":"ch"},{"displayForm":"Ch.E.","slug":"che"},{"displayForm":"chmn.","slug":"chmn"},{"displayForm":"Ches.","slug":"ches"}],"tunaWithSlug":[{"displayForm":"hen","slug":"hen"},{"displayForm":"chin","slug":"chin"},{"displayForm":"cher","slug":"cher"},{"displayForm":"chew","slug":"chew"},{"displayForm":"chef","slug":"chef"},{"displayForm":"then","slug":"then"},{"displayForm":"when","slug":"when"}]}},"meta":{"arg":{"word":"chen-duxiu"},"requestId":"2vYcFeagIXe-U9VeJzkGc","requestStatus":"fulfilled"}}]},"actionData":null,"errors":null}

Chen Duxiu

noun

Word of the Day