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":"iwlFZMWJv-4dgIyXJmoUJ","requestStatus":"fulfilled"}},{"type":"fetchWordsNearby/fulfilled","payload":{"data":{"before":[{"slug":"postcava","entry":"postcava"},{"slug":"post-chaise","entry":"post chaise"},{"slug":"postclassical","entry":"postclassical"},{"slug":"postcode","entry":"postcode"},{"slug":"postcode-discrimination","entry":"postcode discrimination"}],"after":[{"slug":"postcode-prescribing","entry":"postcode prescribing"},{"slug":"postcoital","entry":"postcoital"},{"slug":"postcolonial","entry":"postcolonial"},{"slug":"postcomm","entry":"Postcomm"},{"slug":"postcommunion","entry":"postcommunion"}]}},"meta":{"arg":{"word":"postcode-lottery"},"requestId":"YK7N1um0vM5x0z2iaXaJz","requestStatus":"fulfilled"}},{"type":"luna/fetchExampleSentences/fulfilled","payload":{"data":{"tdb":[],"gbg":[]}},"meta":{"arg":{"word":"postcode-lottery"},"requestId":"VRl9Y6tnwsTNNOgXVP9PD","requestStatus":"fulfilled"}},{"type":"fetchDictionaryResults/fulfilled","payload":{"slugs":[{"entries":[{"__typename":"CollinsEntry","headword":{"displayForm":"postcode lottery","slug":"postcode-lottery"},"homonym":null,"note":null,"origin":null,"partOfSpeechGroups":[{"definitions":[{"crossReferencesConnection":{"edges":[]},"definitionSetChunks":"[{\"text\": \"\", \"type\": \"text\"}, {\"type\": \"defgrp\", \"children\": [{\"text\": \"a situation in which the standard of medical care, education, etc, received by the public varies from area to area, depending on the funding policies of various health boards, local authorities, etc\", \"type\": \"text\"}]}]","examples":[],"idiom":null,"ordinal":1,"sense":null,"subdefinitions":[]}],"ordinal":1,"partOfSpeech":"noun"}],"pronunciations":[],"subEntry":[]}],"url":"postcode-lottery"}]},"meta":{"arg":{"slug":"postcode-lottery"},"requestId":"-6W_lMdbo4tOkAYGwUPVR","requestStatus":"fulfilled"}},{"type":"fetchResultsData/fulfilled","payload":{"data":{"url":"postcode-lottery","displayForm":"postcode lottery","canonicalSlug":"postcode-lottery","content":[{"source":"collins","entries":[{"id":"ad79e27dc.6bfb.1014.b87b.c2803370a23a.1","type":"normal","entry":"postcode lottery","entrySyllabified":null,"entryVariants":"","homograph":null,"pronunciation":{"audio":null,"spell":null,"ipa":""},"predefinitionContent":"","posBlocks":[{"pos":"noun","posSupplementaryInfo":"","definitions":[{"order":1,"type":"simple","predefinitionContent":"British","definition":"a situation in which the standard of medical care, education, etc, received by the public varies from area to area, depending on the funding policies of various health boards, local authorities, etc","postdefinitionContent":""}]}],"origin":"","supplementaryNotes":[],"variantForms":[],"referenceData":[],"relatedForms":[],"derivedForms":[]}]}],"nearbyWordOrdinal":121477,"index-rank-01":["postcode lottery"],"index-rank-02":[],"index-rank-03":[],"index-rank-04":[],"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":"postcode-lottery"},"requestId":"azJy4zE-INRWTB4z3ev-I","requestStatus":"fulfilled"}},{"type":"fetchSpellSuggestions/fulfilled","payload":{"data":{"luna":[],"tuna":[],"lunaWithSlug":[],"tunaWithSlug":[]}},"meta":{"arg":{"word":"postcode-lottery"},"requestId":"Ft6f-j1LvrHrS8dYjNuHM","requestStatus":"fulfilled"}}]},"actionData":null,"errors":null}

postcode lottery

noun

Word of the Day