as in complicated
having many parts or aspects that are usually interrelated
spent his first year at the Pentagon just trying to fathom its byzantine workings
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Recent Examples of byzantine
Congress had enacted byzantine eligibility requirements for disability and Supplemental Security Income benefits, forcing the agency to expend huge amounts of time and money running those programs.
—
Eli Hager, ProPublica, 8 Sep. 2025
The project spans decades and grows increasingly Byzantine and bizarre.
—Seth Abramovitch, HollywoodReporter, 4 Sep. 2025
Hippos, a religious, social and agricultural hub during the Byzantine period, is part of the Sussita National Park managed by the Israel Nature and Parks Authority.
—Leslie Katz, Forbes.com, 26 Aug. 2025
The multi-layered approach seemingly reflects exactly the Byzantine structure the ACC, Big 12, Big Ten and SEC hope to eliminate.
—Jon Wilner, Mercury News, 7 Aug. 2025
Syracuse began as an ancient Greek settlement nearly 3,000 years ago, and its beauty has beckoned both travelers and empires for centuries (Roman, Byzantine, Islamic, and Norman, to name a few).
—Michele Becker, Travel + Leisure, 4 Aug. 2025
Known then and today by the nickname El Greco, his idiosyncratic painting (which appears to draw some on Byzantine traditions) still seems fresh and exciting.
—Jim Higgins, jsonline.com, 15 July 2025
Many fascinating finds from the Byzantine era still turn up in Asia Minor and the Middle East today.
—Andrea Margolis, FOXNews.com, 10 July 2025
Glass lenses and the scientific revolution In the early 13th century, after the sacking of Constantinople, some excellent Byzantine glassmakers left their homes to settle in Venice – at the time a powerful economic and political center.
—Peter Mullner, The Conversation, 3 July 2025
Eli Hager, ProPublica, 8 Sep. 2025
The project spans decades and grows increasingly Byzantine and bizarre.
—Seth Abramovitch, HollywoodReporter, 4 Sep. 2025
Hippos, a religious, social and agricultural hub during the Byzantine period, is part of the Sussita National Park managed by the Israel Nature and Parks Authority.
—Leslie Katz, Forbes.com, 26 Aug. 2025
The multi-layered approach seemingly reflects exactly the Byzantine structure the ACC, Big 12, Big Ten and SEC hope to eliminate.
—Jon Wilner, Mercury News, 7 Aug. 2025
Syracuse began as an ancient Greek settlement nearly 3,000 years ago, and its beauty has beckoned both travelers and empires for centuries (Roman, Byzantine, Islamic, and Norman, to name a few).
—Michele Becker, Travel + Leisure, 4 Aug. 2025
Known then and today by the nickname El Greco, his idiosyncratic painting (which appears to draw some on Byzantine traditions) still seems fresh and exciting.
—Jim Higgins, jsonline.com, 15 July 2025
Many fascinating finds from the Byzantine era still turn up in Asia Minor and the Middle East today.
—Andrea Margolis, FOXNews.com, 10 July 2025
Glass lenses and the scientific revolution In the early 13th century, after the sacking of Constantinople, some excellent Byzantine glassmakers left their homes to settle in Venice – at the time a powerful economic and political center.
—Peter Mullner, The Conversation, 3 July 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for byzantine
Adjective
-
This narrative has taken center stage over a far more complicated and interesting reality.—
Sean Durns,
The Washington Examiner,
12 Sep. 2025
-
With the success of TV shows like Hacks and The White Lotus, which explore the beautifully complicated, often messy inner lives of women who don’t fit the ingenue mold, perhaps more production companies will take chances on similar shows.—
Sam Reed,
Glamour,
12 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
His love of American design codes, such as the white T-shirt and sport jerseys, is evident in his manipulation of the garment to become a skirt or in creating an intricate patchwork tank-style dress.—
Roxanne Robinson,
Forbes.com,
13 Sep. 2025
-
In living tissue, light scattering is common, signal contrast is often low, and reconstructing intricate features across a large volume presents a significant computational challenge.—
Bojan Stojkovski,
Interesting Engineering,
13 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
The shift would send states scrambling and complicate parents’ efforts to get young children vaccinated ahead of the coming respiratory virus season.—
Alexis Simendinger,
The Hill,
14 Aug. 2025
-
The district has tried to be conservative on replacing items as efforts to form a fire territory complicate issues of investment and ownership.—
Shelley Jones,
Chicago Tribune,
8 July 2025
Adjective
-
This goes up to six to eight weeks when the fracture is more complex.—
Bruce Y. Lee,
Forbes.com,
11 Sep. 2025
-
In order to embolden and support his organization, bin Laden often videotaped himself with messages aimed at his target audience, established training centers in Afghanistan, had an expansive funding network that included wealthy individuals, couriers, mosques and other complex ways to raise funds.—
Richard Frankel,
ABC News,
11 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Boiled down in a cauldron using traditional methods, the sulfate-free formula bubbles up into a lovely lather that washes hands without stripping them (the glycerin, as well as coconut, olive, and sweet almond oils, are to thank) and fills the room with its sophisticated, Provençal scents.—
Sophia Panych,
Allure,
16 Sep. 2025
-
Smart stability through clever control The key to this drone’s ability to stabilize is a sophisticated feedback controller.—
Sujita Sinha,
Interesting Engineering,
15 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Byzantine.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/byzantine. Accessed 18 Sep. 2025.
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