1
as in roundabout
not straightforward or direct
we took a circuitous route to the airport so as to avoid the massive traffic jam on the highway
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2
as in rambling
using or containing more words than necessary to express an idea
a circuitous explanation for what seems like a fairly basic concept
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Recent Examples of circuitous
Echinoderm evolution took quite the circuitous route from the bilateral symmetry of Atlascystis to the five or more arms of modern starfish.
—
Jack Knudson, Discover Magazine, 26 June 2025
The book’s circuitous path to publication is at least part of the reason for this.
—Adelle Waldman, New Yorker, 31 May 2025
From ancient remedies to your Amazon cart, mushroom supplements have traveled a circuitous road.
—Boutayna Chokrane, Wired News, 28 May 2025
The 27-year-old has taken the circuitous route to football’s top table, but has developed into one of Europe’s premier forwards.
—Carl Anka, New York Times, 16 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for circuitous
Jack Knudson, Discover Magazine, 26 June 2025
The book’s circuitous path to publication is at least part of the reason for this.
—Adelle Waldman, New Yorker, 31 May 2025
From ancient remedies to your Amazon cart, mushroom supplements have traveled a circuitous road.
—Boutayna Chokrane, Wired News, 28 May 2025
The 27-year-old has taken the circuitous route to football’s top table, but has developed into one of Europe’s premier forwards.
—Carl Anka, New York Times, 16 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for circuitous
Recent Examples of Synonyms for circuitous
Adjective
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In other jurisdictions, this has served as a roundabout way to force police departments to pull those officers from street patrol or detective work, roles that regularly require police to testify about arrests or other incidents.—
Skye Seipp,
Austin American Statesman,
30 July 2025
-
Fox canceled the show, something the new season touches on in a roundabout way.—
Bill Goodykoontz,
AZCentral.com,
29 July 2025
Adjective
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Refine your key points to be clear and concise—no rambling monologues.—
Expert Panel®,
Forbes.com,
15 Apr. 2025
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In the early morning hours of Dec. 26, 1996, Patsy Ramsey called 911 to report her 6-year-old daughter JonBenét missing, and found a rambling ransom note left inside their Boulder, Colorado, home.—
Erin Moriarty,
CBS News,
20 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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Google’s new Pixel 10 ad, that takes an indirect shot at Apple’s Siri problems, gives us an insight into how the upcoming smartphone battle will unfold.—
Janhoi McGregor,
Forbes.com,
7 Aug. 2025
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First, the American government was central to the course of revolution, although in indirect ways.—
Arash Azizi,
The Atlantic,
5 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Words, including those of artists themselves—as prolix in their way as critics, curators, and historians—can serve vision but can also deflect from it.—
Barry Schwabsky,
ARTnews.com,
3 Sep. 2019
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In 1949, a young American artist named Ray Johnson left Black Mountain College near Asheville, N.C., moved to New York City and began to explore his prolix talents, both visual and verbal.—
Roberta Smith,
New York Times,
30 May 2024
Adjective
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To do this, the team used a robotic arm equipped with a force and torque sensor to measure air flow in hundreds of spots inside a short model duct to build up a map that shows the unstable danger points in a circular duct and safer ones where the air currents cancel one another out.—
David Szondy
August 02,
New Atlas,
2 Aug. 2025
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This circular rash, often with a clear center, gradually expands outward and may have the characterstic bull’s-eye appearance.—
Matthew Binnicker,
Forbes.com,
1 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Circuitous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/circuitous. Accessed 15 Aug. 2025.
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