Synonyms of circuitous

circuitous

adjective

(ˌ)sər-ˈkyü-ə-təs 

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

Synonyms & Similar Words

• roundabout
• indirect
• circular
• winding
• twisting
• tortuous
• misleading
• serpentine
• sinuous
• rambling
• deceptive
• prolix
• subtle
• insidious
• meandering
• wandering
• verbose
• curvy
• crooked
• long-winded
• circumlocutory
• duplicitous
• deceitful
• dishonest
• devious
• tricky
• cunning
• crafty
• underhanded
• underhand
• sneaky
• calculating

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• direct
• straightforward
• straight
• plain
• frank
• open
• honest
• forthright
• candid
• undisguised
• unconcealed

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

Synonyms & Similar Words

• rambling
• prolix
• talkative
• exaggerated
• wordy
• verbose
• long-winded
• circumlocutory
• diffuse
• communicative
• pleonastic
• redundant
• garrulous
• conversational
• windy
• logorrheic
• loquacious
• voluble
• repetitious
• talky
• tautological
• chatty
• periphrastic
• tautologous
• gaseous
• bombastic
• grandiloquent
• gabby
• gassy
• embroidered
• embellished
• highfalutin

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• concise
• succinct
• terse
• short
• brief
• pithy
• compact
• crisp
• epigrammatic
• summary
• abbreviated
• abrupt
• aphoristic
• sententious
• blunt
• condensed
• brusque
• abridged
• laconic
• curt
• compendious
• shortened
• snippy

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of circuitous

That trip provided the source material for The Professional, a circuitous fish-out-of-water travelogue that serves as a meditation on the contradictions of performing music as a non-musician. — Levi Dayan, Pitchfork, 9 June 2026

When Last Chance Grade is closed, the only alternative route between Crescent City and the little town of Klamath 20 miles south — aside from steep, unpaved logging roads — is a circuitous 449-mile, eight-hour detour through Redding and southern Oregon. — Los Angeles Times, 18 June 2026

Cherry took a circuitous route back to San Diego, moving to Phoenix for high school, then a junior college in New Mexico for two seasons, then UNLV in 2024-25, then Sacramento State last season. — Mark Zeigler, San Diego Union-Tribune, 11 Apr. 2026

Tamerra Griffin and Carl Anka recap the USMNT’s dominant 4-1 victory over Paraguay by diving into the circuitous journey of two-goal hero Folarin Balogun with senior soccer writer Paul Tenorio. — The Athletic, New York Times, 16 June 2026

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