circuitous
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of circuitous
1655–65; < Medieval Latin circuitōsus, equivalent to circuit ( us ) circuit + -ōsus -ous
Explanation
Circuitous means indirect or roundabout. If you're already late for school, you'll want to take the straightest, fastest way there, not a circuitous one! Circuitous comes from the Latin word circuitus meaning "a going around." If you're being circuitous it's like you're going around and around in circles. It can also refer to someone's manner or speech, if they are not being direct. For example, if you want someone to get you another piece of cake, but just you sit there looking longingly at your empty plate and talking about how delicious cake is, then you're being circuitous. And annoying.
Vocabulary lists containing circuitous
100 SAT words Beginning with "C"
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Grade 12, List 3
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This Week In Culture: October 26–November 1, 2019
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Leaning on a burlap bag brimming with gum arabic, Ahmad pointed to a map on a journalist’s phone to show the circuitous path he took to get here.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 31, 2026
If LIV ultimately folds, a collection of the sport’s top players will be suddenly out of work—and many would likely face a circuitous path back to the PGA Tour.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 16, 2026
"Flights already doing circuitous routing have even less choice."
From BBC ● Mar. 6, 2026
In that case, exchanges like Coinbase and Robinhood say they can’t trace back the cost basis because of the holding’s circuitous route.
From MarketWatch ● Feb. 14, 2026
The circuitous route from Baltimore to Annapolis, where they kept getting on and off the same road to stop at little huts by the road and let off passengers, took another hour and a half.
From "Homecoming" by Cynthia Voigt
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
