round·about
ˈrau̇n-də-ˌbau̇t 
: circuitous, indirect
had to take a roundabout route
roundaboutness
noun
1
: a circuitous route : detour
2
British
: merry-go-round
3
: a short close-fitting jacket worn by men and boys especially in the 19th century
4
Synonyms
Examples of roundabout in a Sentence
Adjective
He took a roundabout route to town.
In a roundabout way, he told me that my help was not wanted.
Recent Examples on the Web
Joel Khalili, WIRED, 5 Apr. 2024
In a roundabout way, Diller is aligned with most flexible-work experts on that point.
—Jane Thier, Fortune, 5 Apr. 2024
And, in a roundabout way, that’s why this Bucs team needed Bowles.
—John Romano, Orlando Sentinel, 10 Jan. 2024
In short, a longer strike could benefit some platforms like Netflix in a roundabout way.
—Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 1 July 2023
The lander is on a roundabout route to the moon, with the company aiming to touch down on the lunar surface Feb. 23.
—Denise Chow, NBC News, 8 Jan. 2024
Perhaps that second song is Swift’s roundabout way of flipping the tables on Sweeney, revealing his whereabouts.
—Alexandra Del Rosario, Los Angeles Times, 7 Feb. 2024
Agnostic but empathetic, Wilson’s film suggests communing with the dead may just be a roundabout way of reaching the living.
—Guy Lodge, Variety, 25 Jan. 2024
Photo by Victoria Song / The Verge Photo by Victoria Song / The Verge
There’s a reason Withings opted for such a roundabout approach.
—Victoria Song, The Verge, 31 Aug. 2023
Danielle MacKey, The New Yorker, 5 Apr. 2024
The store is set to open Saturday, April 6, at 9:30 a.m., at 700 S. Wayfinder Ave., just beyond a roundabout in the Ten Mile Crossing business development.
—Angela Palermo, Idaho Statesman, 29 Mar. 2024
City Aviation Director Pat Klein objected, asking City Council members in an email why taxpayers should pay for roundabouts for a parking lot that would hurt the airport’s bottom line.
—Mike Hendricks, Kansas City Star, 22 Mar. 2024
At a Nablus roundabout, 53-year-old Taysir Dabeek sells parsley and lettuce.
—Claire Parker, Washington Post, 11 Mar. 2024
The video was filmed at night on a section of open ground near the Nabulsi roundabout on Al-Rashid Street in Gaza City.
—NBC News, 1 Mar. 2024
The roundabout, which was projected to cost $4.5 million two years ago, is being built in concert with a large residential and commercial project on the Northwest corner of Allisonville and 96th Street.
—John Tuohy, The Indianapolis Star, 23 Feb. 2024
The electric automaker’s Full Self-Driving program is operational on local roads and residential streets and purports to handle more complex situations like roundabouts, traffic lights, and four-way stops.
—Andrew J. Hawkins, The Verge, 15 Feb. 2024
The Kuwait roundabout in Gaza City has become known as an area where aid trucks distribute food, attracting crowds of people desperate for supplies.
—Kareem Khadder, CNN, 23 Mar. 2024
Adjective
The failure of Terraform’s tokens contributed to the collapse of hedge fund Three Arrows Capital in June, followed by crypto lenders Voyager Digital, then BlockFi, then Genesis—and, in a roundabout way, FTX too.
—Joel Khalili, WIRED, 5 Apr. 2024
In a roundabout way, Diller is aligned with most flexible-work experts on that point.
—Jane Thier, Fortune, 5 Apr. 2024
And, in a roundabout way, that’s why this Bucs team needed Bowles.
—John Romano, Orlando Sentinel, 10 Jan. 2024
In short, a longer strike could benefit some platforms like Netflix in a roundabout way.
—Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 1 July 2023
The lander is on a roundabout route to the moon, with the company aiming to touch down on the lunar surface Feb. 23.
—Denise Chow, NBC News, 8 Jan. 2024
Perhaps that second song is Swift’s roundabout way of flipping the tables on Sweeney, revealing his whereabouts.
—Alexandra Del Rosario, Los Angeles Times, 7 Feb. 2024
Agnostic but empathetic, Wilson’s film suggests communing with the dead may just be a roundabout way of reaching the living.
—Guy Lodge, Variety, 25 Jan. 2024
Photo by Victoria Song / The Verge Photo by Victoria Song / The Verge
There’s a reason Withings opted for such a roundabout approach.
—Victoria Song, The Verge, 31 Aug. 2023
Noun
The next day, just after sunset at a monument known as Salvador del Mundo, situated in a trafficked roundabout in the capital, some seventy feminist protesters stood with banners, chanting slogans about electoral fraud and Fascism.
—Danielle MacKey, The New Yorker, 5 Apr. 2024
The store is set to open Saturday, April 6, at 9:30 a.m., at 700 S. Wayfinder Ave., just beyond a roundabout in the Ten Mile Crossing business development.
—Angela Palermo, Idaho Statesman, 29 Mar. 2024
City Aviation Director Pat Klein objected, asking City Council members in an email why taxpayers should pay for roundabouts for a parking lot that would hurt the airport’s bottom line.
—Mike Hendricks, Kansas City Star, 22 Mar. 2024
At a Nablus roundabout, 53-year-old Taysir Dabeek sells parsley and lettuce.
—Claire Parker, Washington Post, 11 Mar. 2024
The video was filmed at night on a section of open ground near the Nabulsi roundabout on Al-Rashid Street in Gaza City.
—NBC News, 1 Mar. 2024
The roundabout, which was projected to cost $4.5 million two years ago, is being built in concert with a large residential and commercial project on the Northwest corner of Allisonville and 96th Street.
—John Tuohy, The Indianapolis Star, 23 Feb. 2024
The electric automaker’s Full Self-Driving program is operational on local roads and residential streets and purports to handle more complex situations like roundabouts, traffic lights, and four-way stops.
—Andrew J. Hawkins, The Verge, 15 Feb. 2024
The Kuwait roundabout in Gaza City has become known as an area where aid trucks distribute food, attracting crowds of people desperate for supplies.
—Kareem Khadder, CNN, 23 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'roundabout.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near roundabout
Cite this Entry
“Roundabout.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/roundabout. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
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