tortuous

[tawr-choo-uhs]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR tortuous ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

full of twists, turns, or bends; twisting, winding, or crooked: a tortuous path.

not direct or straightforward, as in procedure or speech; intricate; circuitous: tortuous negotiations lasting for months.

deceitfully indirect or morally crooked, as proceedings, methods, or policy; devious.

Origin of tortuous

1350–1400; Middle English < Latin tortuōsus, equivalent to tortu(s) a twisting (tor(quēre) to twist, bend + -tus suffix of v. action) + -ōsus -ous

Related formstor·tu·ous·ly, adverbtor·tu·ous·ness, nounnon·tor·tu·ous, adjectivenon·tor·tu·ous·ly, adverbun·tor·tu·ous, adjectiveun·tor·tu·ous·ly, adverbun·tor·tu·ous·ness, noun

Can be confusedtortuous torturous (see usage note at torturous)

Synonyms for tortuous

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR tortuous ON THESAURUS.COM

1. bent, sinuous, serpentine. 2. evasive, roundabout, indirect.

Usage note

See torturous.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for tortuous

meandering, winding, convoluted, labyrinthine, circuitous, indirect, serpentine, twisting, tricky, bent, crooked, curved, roundabout, sinuous, snaky, zigzag, anfractuous, flexuous, involute, meandrous

Examples from the Web for tortuous

Contemporary Examples of tortuous

All of the various things I do I love doing, and occasionally I find them tortuous.
Bob Balaban: How I Write
Noah Charney
February 5, 2014
In 2011, after tortuous negotiations, a deal was struck for $1.2 trillion in spending cuts over 10 years.
Markets Approve of the Way U.S. Political System Handles Debt Problems
Robert Shapiro
January 3, 2013
So why take the tortuous and offensive back-door route to appreciating Wharton?
Why Jonathan Franzen Can’t Appreciate Edith Wharton
Marina Budhos
March 1, 2012
The Quetta Shura official says the negotiations with the French were tortuous.
How the Taliban’s Hostages Were Freed
Sami Yousafzai, Ron Moreau
July 1, 2011

Historical Examples of tortuous

The principle of nationality is emerging from the tortuous confusion of the ages.
Mountain Meditations
L. Lind-af-Hageby
Dick, will you tell me what I do know, if I do not read every turn and trick of their tortuous nature?
Lord Kilgobbin
Charles Lever
The Fortymile is a very picturesque but most tortuous river.
Ten Thousand Miles with a Dog Sled
Hudson Stuck
Vermicular: worm-like, tortuous: resembling the tracks of a worm.
Explanation of Terms Used in Entomology
John. B. Smith
There was a winding stair of stone, narrow and tortuous, in one corner of the tower.
The Golden Dog
William Kirby

British Dictionary definitions for tortuous

tortuous

adjective

twisted or windinga tortuous road

devious or cunninga tortuous mind

intricate

Derived Formstortuously, adverbtortuousness, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for tortuous

adj.

late 14c., from Anglo-French tortuous (12c.), from Latin tortuosus "full of twists, winding," from tortus "a twisting, winding," from stem of torquere "to twist, wring, distort" (see thwart).

tortuous in Medicine

tortuous

[tôr′chōō-əs]

adj.

Having many turns; winding or twisting.