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":"cpHXacYDyZ-TDCtB7l9ii","requestStatus":"fulfilled"}},{"type":"fetchWordsNearby/fulfilled","payload":{"data":{"before":[{"slug":"clisis","entry":"clisis"},{"slug":"clisthenes","entry":"Clisthenes"},{"slug":"clistocarpous","entry":"clistocarpous"},{"slug":"clistothecium","entry":"clistothecium"},{"slug":"clit","entry":"clit"}],"after":[{"slug":"clitellum","entry":"clitellum"},{"slug":"clithral","entry":"clithral"},{"slug":"clitic","entry":"clitic"},{"slug":"cliticize","entry":"cliticize"},{"slug":"clitoridectomy","entry":"clitoridectomy"}]}},"meta":{"arg":{"word":"clite"},"requestId":"QZYsSfrDwdgvbdkKapniY","requestStatus":"fulfilled"}},{"type":"luna/fetchExampleSentences/fulfilled","payload":{"data":{"tdb":[],"gbg":[]}},"meta":{"arg":{"word":"clite"},"requestId":"DgVropgjnq5CQxyq9yyL-","requestStatus":"fulfilled"}},{"type":"fetchDictionaryResults/fulfilled","payload":{"slugs":[{"entries":[{"__typename":"Entry","audioPronunciations":[{"mpeg":"https://nonprod-audio.dictionary.com/C05/C0561500/C0561500.mp3"}],"confusableNotes":[],"genderNotes":[],"grammarNotes":[],"headword":{"displayForm":"Clite","slug":"clite"},"idioms":[],"orderKey":99999010,"ordinal":10,"origin":null,"partOfSpeechBlock":[{"definitions":[{"antonymsConnection":{"edges":[]},"definitionSetChunks":"[{\"text\": \"Classical Mythology.\", \"type\": \"label_set\", \"pointsTo\": \"u3bb48a285cbafaf0.-3bc55cee.14d9e606397.573f\"}, {\"type\": \"def\", \"children\": [{\"text\": \"the wife of Cyzicus, who hanged herself when her husband was mistakenly killed by the Argonauts.\", \"type\": \"text\"}]}]","examples":[],"ordinal":1,"subdefinitions":[],"synonymsConnection":{"edges":[]}}],"inflectionSets":[],"labelSet":null,"ordinal":1,"partOfSpeech":"noun"}],"pronunciationNotes":[],"pronunciationSet":{"pronunciationSetChunk":"{\"type\": \"pronunciation_set\", \"pointsTo\": \"u3bb48a285cbafaf0.-3bc55cee.14d9e606397.5732\", \"pronunciationGroupChunks\": [{\"type\": \"pronunciation_group\", \"pointsTo\": \"u3bb48a285cbafaf0.-3bc55cee.14d9e606397.5733\", \"ipaChunks\": [{\"text\": \"\\u02c8kla\\u026a ti\", \"type\": \"text\", \"pointsTo\": \"u3bb48a285cbafaf0.-3bc55cee.14d9e606397.5734\"}], \"spellChunks\": [{\"text\": \"klahy\", \"type\": \"bold\", \"pointsTo\": \"u3bb48a285cbafaf0.-3bc55cee.14d9e606397.5736\"}, {\"text\": \"-tee\", \"type\": \"text\"}]}]}"},"relatedFormSets":[],"sensitiveNotes":[],"spellingNotes":[],"synonymStudy":[],"usageAlerts":[],"usageNotes":[],"variants":[],"verbPhrases":[]}],"url":"clite"}]},"meta":{"arg":{"slug":"clite"},"requestId":"BU-EqZIuW2-sqlhXGFEey","requestStatus":"fulfilled"}},{"type":"fetchResultsData/fulfilled","payload":{"data":{"url":"clite","displayForm":"Clite","canonicalSlug":"clite","content":[{"source":"luna","entries":[{"id":"u3bb48a285cbafaf0.-3bc55cee.14d9e606397.572e","type":"normal","entry":"Clite","entrySyllabified":"Cli·te","entryVariants":[],"homograph":null,"pronunciation":{"ipa":"ˈklaɪ ti ","spell":"klahy-tee ","audio":{"audio/ogg":"https://static.sfdict.com/audio/lunawav/C05/C0561500.ogg","audio/mpeg":"https://static.sfdict.com/audio/C05/C0561500.mp3"}},"predefinitionContent":"","posBlocks":[{"definitions":[{"order":1,"type":"simple","predefinitionContent":"Classical Mythology.","postdefinitionContent":"","definition":"the wife of Cyzicus, who hanged herself when her husband was mistakenly killed by the Argonauts.","synonyms":"","antonyms":"","cites":[]}],"pos":"noun","posSupplementaryInfo":""}],"origin":null,"originData":null,"supplementaryNotes":[],"variantForms":[],"variantSpellings":[],"referenceData":[],"relatedForms":[],"confusables":[]}]}],"nearbyWordOrdinal":31234,"index-rank-01":["clite"],"index-rank-02":[],"index-rank-03":[],"index-rank-04":["clite's","clites","clites'"],"index-rank-05":[],"index-rank-06":[],"index-rank-07":[],"index-rank-08":[],"index-rank-09":[],"index-rank-10":[],"index-rank-11":[],"index-rank-12":[],"index-rank-13":[],"index-rank-14":[],"index-rank-15":[],"tunaSlug":null,"isFeaturedMetaSlug":false}},"meta":{"arg":{"word":"clite"},"requestId":"Lc2PLJ1QgIq7KIXVfIYIX","requestStatus":"fulfilled"}},{"type":"fetchSpellSuggestions/fulfilled","payload":{"data":{"luna":["Clite","clit","Cloete","clot","glute","lite","Colet","culet","clat","Clouet","colter","-lite","Cline","Clive","blite","calotte","clime","cline","clootie","clutter","elite","flite","Colt","colt","cult","Clyde","clade","clyde","glide","cloot","clout","coldie","gilet","calcite","ciliate","collet","cullet","kilter","kiltie","Clift","Clint","Cloë","Colette","clatter","clift","clint","clipt","clue","cote","cute","côte","glitter","kite","liter","lote","lute","gilt","jilt","kilt","CTE","LTE","cleat","climate","cutie","lit","Joliet","Juliet","clitic","Carlita","cite","collate","collide","gleet","Clio","Lit.","cate","coit","colat.","colet.","gite","gîte","late","lit.","cld.","-cline","-lyte","cool it","-cle"],"tuna":["clot","colter","clime","clutter","elite","colt","cult","glide","clout","ciliate","clothe","kilter","clatter","clue","cote","cute","glitter","kite","lute","gilt","jilt","kilt","cleat","climate","clod","cutie","glut","lit","Juliet","cite","cliche","clique","clone","close","cloth","clove","collate","collide","flute","coiled","cloud","late","alit","clip","flit","slit","clad","polite","carte","glitz","quite","alate","caste","clave","click","cliff","climb","cling","conte","crate","elate","elide","gelate","plate","slate","slide","call it","cool it","glade","call to"],"lunaWithSlug":[{"displayForm":"Clite","slug":"clite"},{"displayForm":"clit","slug":"clit"},{"displayForm":"Cloete","slug":"cloete"},{"displayForm":"clot","slug":"clot"},{"displayForm":"glute","slug":"glute"},{"displayForm":"lite","slug":"lite"},{"displayForm":"Colet","slug":"colet"},{"displayForm":"culet","slug":"culet"},{"displayForm":"clat","slug":"clat"},{"displayForm":"Clouet","slug":"clouet"},{"displayForm":"colter","slug":"colter"},{"displayForm":"-lite","slug":"lite"},{"displayForm":"Cline","slug":"cline"},{"displayForm":"Clive","slug":"clive"},{"displayForm":"blite","slug":"blite"},{"displayForm":"calotte","slug":"calotte"},{"displayForm":"clime","slug":"clime"},{"displayForm":"cline","slug":"cline"},{"displayForm":"clootie","slug":"clootie"},{"displayForm":"clutter","slug":"clutter"},{"displayForm":"elite","slug":"elite"},{"displayForm":"flite","slug":"flite"},{"displayForm":"Colt","slug":"colt"},{"displayForm":"colt","slug":"colt"},{"displayForm":"cult","slug":"cult"},{"displayForm":"Clyde","slug":"clyde"},{"displayForm":"clade","slug":"clade"},{"displayForm":"clyde","slug":"clyde"},{"displayForm":"glide","slug":"glide"},{"displayForm":"cloot","slug":"cloot"},{"displayForm":"clout","slug":"clout"},{"displayForm":"coldie","slug":"coldie"},{"displayForm":"gilet","slug":"gilet"},{"displayForm":"calcite","slug":"calcite"},{"displayForm":"ciliate","slug":"ciliate"},{"displayForm":"collet","slug":"collet"},{"displayForm":"cullet","slug":"cullet"},{"displayForm":"kilter","slug":"kilter"},{"displayForm":"kiltie","slug":"kiltie"},{"displayForm":"Clift","slug":"clift"},{"displayForm":"Clint","slug":"clint"},{"displayForm":"Cloë","slug":"cloe"},{"displayForm":"Colette","slug":"colette"},{"displayForm":"clatter","slug":"clatter"},{"displayForm":"clift","slug":"clift"},{"displayForm":"clint","slug":"clint"},{"displayForm":"clipt","slug":"clipt"},{"displayForm":"clue","slug":"clue"},{"displayForm":"cote","slug":"cote"},{"displayForm":"cute","slug":"cute"},{"displayForm":"côte","slug":"cote"},{"displayForm":"glitter","slug":"glitter"},{"displayForm":"kite","slug":"kite"},{"displayForm":"liter","slug":"liter"},{"displayForm":"lote","slug":"lote"},{"displayForm":"lute","slug":"lute"},{"displayForm":"gilt","slug":"gilt"},{"displayForm":"jilt","slug":"jilt"},{"displayForm":"kilt","slug":"kilt"},{"displayForm":"CTE","slug":"cte"},{"displayForm":"LTE","slug":"lte"},{"displayForm":"cleat","slug":"cleat"},{"displayForm":"climate","slug":"climate"},{"displayForm":"cutie","slug":"cutie"},{"displayForm":"lit","slug":"lit"},{"displayForm":"Joliet","slug":"joliet"},{"displayForm":"Juliet","slug":"juliet"},{"displayForm":"clitic","slug":"clitic"},{"displayForm":"Carlita","slug":"carlita"},{"displayForm":"cite","slug":"cite"},{"displayForm":"collate","slug":"collate"},{"displayForm":"collide","slug":"collide"},{"displayForm":"gleet","slug":"gleet"},{"displayForm":"Clio","slug":"clio"},{"displayForm":"Lit.","slug":"lit"},{"displayForm":"cate","slug":"cate"},{"displayForm":"coit","slug":"coit"},{"displayForm":"colat.","slug":"colat"},{"displayForm":"colet.","slug":"colet"},{"displayForm":"gite","slug":"gite"},{"displayForm":"gîte","slug":"gite"},{"displayForm":"late","slug":"late"},{"displayForm":"lit.","slug":"lit"},{"displayForm":"cld.","slug":"cld"},{"displayForm":"-cline","slug":"cline"},{"displayForm":"-lyte","slug":"-lyte"},{"displayForm":"cool it","slug":"cool--it"},{"displayForm":"-cle","slug":"-cle"}],"tunaWithSlug":[{"displayForm":"clot","slug":"clot"},{"displayForm":"colter","slug":"colter"},{"displayForm":"clime","slug":"clime"},{"displayForm":"clutter","slug":"clutter"},{"displayForm":"elite","slug":"elite"},{"displayForm":"colt","slug":"colt"},{"displayForm":"cult","slug":"cult"},{"displayForm":"glide","slug":"glide"},{"displayForm":"clout","slug":"clout"},{"displayForm":"ciliate","slug":"ciliate"},{"displayForm":"clothe","slug":"clothe"},{"displayForm":"kilter","slug":"kilter"},{"displayForm":"clatter","slug":"clatter"},{"displayForm":"clue","slug":"clue"},{"displayForm":"cote","slug":"cote"},{"displayForm":"cute","slug":"cute"},{"displayForm":"glitter","slug":"glitter"},{"displayForm":"kite","slug":"kite"},{"displayForm":"lute","slug":"lute"},{"displayForm":"gilt","slug":"gilt"},{"displayForm":"jilt","slug":"jilt"},{"displayForm":"kilt","slug":"kilt"},{"displayForm":"cleat","slug":"cleat"},{"displayForm":"climate","slug":"climate"},{"displayForm":"clod","slug":"clod"},{"displayForm":"cutie","slug":"cutie"},{"displayForm":"glut","slug":"glut"},{"displayForm":"lit","slug":"lit"},{"displayForm":"Juliet","slug":"juliet"},{"displayForm":"cite","slug":"cite"},{"displayForm":"cliche","slug":"cliche"},{"displayForm":"clique","slug":"clique"},{"displayForm":"clone","slug":"clone"},{"displayForm":"close","slug":"close"},{"displayForm":"cloth","slug":"cloth"},{"displayForm":"clove","slug":"clove"},{"displayForm":"collate","slug":"collate"},{"displayForm":"collide","slug":"collide"},{"displayForm":"flute","slug":"flute"},{"displayForm":"coiled","slug":"coiled"},{"displayForm":"cloud","slug":"cloud"},{"displayForm":"late","slug":"late"},{"displayForm":"alit","slug":"alit"},{"displayForm":"clip","slug":"clip"},{"displayForm":"flit","slug":"flit"},{"displayForm":"slit","slug":"slit"},{"displayForm":"clad","slug":"clad"},{"displayForm":"polite","slug":"polite"},{"displayForm":"carte","slug":"carte"},{"displayForm":"glitz","slug":"glitz"},{"displayForm":"quite","slug":"quite"},{"displayForm":"alate","slug":"alate"},{"displayForm":"caste","slug":"caste"},{"displayForm":"clave","slug":"clave"},{"displayForm":"click","slug":"click"},{"displayForm":"cliff","slug":"cliff"},{"displayForm":"climb","slug":"climb"},{"displayForm":"cling","slug":"cling"},{"displayForm":"conte","slug":"conte"},{"displayForm":"crate","slug":"crate"},{"displayForm":"elate","slug":"elate"},{"displayForm":"elide","slug":"elide"},{"displayForm":"gelate","slug":"gelate"},{"displayForm":"plate","slug":"plate"},{"displayForm":"slate","slug":"slate"},{"displayForm":"slide","slug":"slide"},{"displayForm":"call it","slug":"call%20it"},{"displayForm":"cool it","slug":"cool%20it"},{"displayForm":"glade","slug":"glade"},{"displayForm":"call to","slug":"call%20to"}]}},"meta":{"arg":{"word":"clite"},"requestId":"VEXp2HG_bXmdL_nPCUHhO","requestStatus":"fulfilled"}}]},"actionData":null,"errors":null}

Clite

noun

Word of the Day