circuitous

adjective

cir·​cu·​i·​tous (ˌ)sər-ˈkyü-ə-təs 

1

: having a circular or winding course

a circuitous route

a circuitous journey by snowmobile

2

: not being forthright or direct in language or action

a circuitous explanation

His circuitous form of logic was mind-boggling.

circuitously adverb

circuitousness noun

Did you know?

If you guessed that circuitous is related to circuit, you're right—both words come from Latin circuitus, the past participle of the verb circumire, meaning "to go around." Circumire is derived, in turn, from Latin circum, meaning "around," plus ire, which means "to go." Other circum descendants making the rounds in English include circumference ("the perimeter of a circle"), circumvent (one meaning of which is "to make a circuit around"), circumlocution ("the act of 'talking around' a subject"), and circumnavigate ("to go around"). There's also the prefix circum-, which means "around" or "about," and the familiar word circumstance, which describes a condition or event that "stands around" another.

Synonyms

• circular
• indirect
• roundabout

Examples of circuitous in a Sentence

Their logic seems a bit circuitous.

we took a circuitous route to the airport so as to avoid the massive traffic jam on the highway

Recent Examples on the Web

Now, after a circuitous route to the screen, a TV version executive produced and largely written by Taddeo, starring Shailene Woodley, DeWanda Wise and Betty Gilpin, premieres Friday on Starz. —Meredith Blake, Los Angeles Times, 13 Sep. 2024

Snyder had to take an awfully circuitous path to today’s two-part director’s cut release of Rebel Moon on Netflix. —Brian Davids, The Hollywood Reporter, 2 Aug. 2024

Grimes has previously addressed her ex-partner’s growing animosity towards trans people in a more circuitous fashion. —Samantha Riedel, Them, 26 July 2024

The seven-month total dependence on the northern transportation routes, which are circuitous and treacherous, cost the United States hundreds of millions of dollars and much heartache. —Vanda Felbab-Brown, Foreign Affairs, 18 July 2012

Word History

Etymology

perhaps from Medieval Latin circuitosus, from Latin circuitus — see circuit entry 1

First Known Use

1664, in the meaning defined at sense 1

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Kids Definition

circuitous

adjective

cir·​cu·​itous

(ˌ)sər-ˈkyü-ət-əs

1

: not saying what one means in simple and sincere language

2

: having a circular or winding course

a circuitous route

circuitously adverb

circuitousness noun