Synonyms for circuitous
- adjective
Most common
winding serpentine tortuous sinuous indirect roundabout circumlocutory
Synonyms by meaning
Adjective
1. Tortuous
tortuous, winding, sinuous, serpentine, ambagious, anfractuous, devious dated
2. Roundabout — not direct or to the point
Other
Definitions
- adj. 1
Not direct or to the point.
- adj. 2
Being a long and winding route.
Example sentences
- winding I'm getting tired of driving on this winding road.
- tortuous The five-year civil war has seen plenty of tortuous battlefield ups and downs.
- sinuous The hikers followed a sinuous path that twisted through the forest.
- indirect Taxes consist of direct taxes and indirect ones.
- roundabout There's a new roundabout as you enter the village.
Popularity over time
| Word | 1850 → 2019 | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| circuitous | steady | |
| winding | steady | |
| serpentine | falling | |
| tortuous | steady | |
| sinuous | steady | |
| indirect | steady |
Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.
By length
- 7 letters
- winding2, devious3, sinuous2
- 8 letters
- indirect3, circular3, tortuous3
- 9 letters
- ambagious
- 10 letters
- roundabout3, serpentine3
- 11 letters
- anfractuous
- 14 letters
- circumlocutory
The small number after each word is its number of syllables (winding2 = 2 syllables).