Synonyms for knotty
- adjective
Synonyms by meaning
Adjective
1. Complicated — complicated or tricky; complex, difficult
complicated, complex, intricate, difficult, tough, hard, thorny, labyrinthine, tangled, perplexing, involved, convoluted, rough, problematic, tortuous, puzzling, byzantine, problematical, baffling, elusive, perplexed, knaggy
Other
Definitions
- adj. 1
Complicated or tricky; complex, difficult.
- adj. 2
Of string or something stringlike: full of, or tied up, in knots.
Related words
- Word family
- knottiness knot
Example sentences
- difficult Explain to him the difficult situation you are in.
- complex The plants manufacture complex chemical compounds.
- complicated The problem's a little more complicated than that.
- intricate I can see some intricate patterns in the picture.
- knotted His black tie was perfectly knotted.
- gnarled The raven perched atop the eerie, gnarled tree.
Popularity over time
| Word | 1850 → 2019 | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| knotty | falling | |
| difficult | steady | |
| complex | steady | |
| complicated | steady | |
| intricate | steady | |
| knotted | rising |
Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.
By length
- 4 letters
- hard1
- 5 letters
- tough1, rough1, wurly
- 6 letters
- thorny2, gnarly2, snarly, knaggy, knurly
- 7 letters
- complex2, tangled2, elusive3, knotted2, gnarled1, knobbed
- 8 letters
- involved2, puzzling3, baffling3, tortuous3
- 9 letters
- difficult3, intricate3, byzantine3, perplexed2
- 10 letters
- convoluted4, perplexing3
- 11 letters
- complicated4, problematic4
- 12 letters
- labyrinthine4
- 13 letters
- problematical5
The small number after each word is its number of syllables (thorny2 = 2 syllables).