: a deviation from a direct course or the usual procedure
especially
: a roundabout way temporarily replacing part of a route
detoured; detouring; detours
: to proceed by a detour
detour around road construction
1
: to send by a circuitous route
detour traffic around an accident
2
: to avoid by going around : bypass
detour an accident site
Examples of detour in a Sentence
Noun
After a number of unexpected detours, we finally arrived at our destination.
The little restaurant is worth a detour.
We had to make a detour around the heaviest traffic.
We took a detour from the main streets.
The road is closed ahead, so traffic will have to follow the detour.
Verb
We detoured around the heaviest traffic.
A police officer was detouring traffic around the scene of the accident.
Traffic will be detoured to 72nd Street.
Recent Examples on the Web
Noelle Wiehe, The Orlando Sentinel, 17 Aug. 2025
Directness: road authorities should minimize detours and delays for cyclists.
—Carlton Reid, Forbes.com, 12 Aug. 2025
Olivia Rose, AZCentral.com, 15 Aug. 2025
Route 31 will detour eastbound only off State Street between 50th Street and 35th Street as construction continues.
—Cailey Gleeson, jsonline.com, 6 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for detour
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Noun
When Phillips began walking to his office, Stiles, then a senior mass communication specialist, took a detour on the way.
—Noelle Wiehe, The Orlando Sentinel, 17 Aug. 2025
Directness: road authorities should minimize detours and delays for cyclists.
—Carlton Reid, Forbes.com, 12 Aug. 2025
Verb
Detour: Traffic will detour on westbound I-10 starting at the Split interchange and reconnect with I-17 west of 19th Avenue, ADOT said.
—Olivia Rose, AZCentral.com, 15 Aug. 2025
Route 31 will detour eastbound only off State Street between 50th Street and 35th Street as construction continues.
—Cailey Gleeson, jsonline.com, 6 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for detour
Cite this Entry
“Detour.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/detour. Accessed 21 Aug. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
detour
1 of 2 noun
de·tour
ˈdē-ˌtu̇(ə)r 
also di-ˈtu̇(ə)r
: a departure from a direct course or the usual procedure
especially
: a roundabout way temporarily replacing a regular route
detour
2 of 2 verb
: to send or proceed by a detour
detour traffic around an accident
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