as in complicated
having many parts or aspects that are usually interrelated
a convoluted explanation that left the listeners even more confused than they were before
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Recent Examples of convoluted
What worked in college might not succeed at the next level, where the best-of-the-best athletes reside, and offensive schemes become even more convoluted.
—
Caleb Yum, Austin American Statesman, 24 Jan. 2026
Try again to lift the height limit and aggressively replan that convoluted neighborhood.
—Phillip Molnar, San Diego Union-Tribune, 23 Jan. 2026
The Golden Globes have a history as convoluted and tortured as the ceremony is glitzy and wasted.
—Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 12 Jan. 2026
The legal consequences of the shooting were exhausting and convoluted—not because the system was dragging its feet but because a thoroughgoing judiciary insisted on doing its work.
—Adam Gopnik, New Yorker, 12 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for convoluted
Caleb Yum, Austin American Statesman, 24 Jan. 2026
Try again to lift the height limit and aggressively replan that convoluted neighborhood.
—Phillip Molnar, San Diego Union-Tribune, 23 Jan. 2026
The Golden Globes have a history as convoluted and tortured as the ceremony is glitzy and wasted.
—Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 12 Jan. 2026
The legal consequences of the shooting were exhausting and convoluted—not because the system was dragging its feet but because a thoroughgoing judiciary insisted on doing its work.
—Adam Gopnik, New Yorker, 12 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for convoluted
Recent Examples of Synonyms for convoluted
Adjective
-
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced Mladenov, a Bulgarian diplomat, as the director-general of the board meant to oversee the implementation of the second and far more complicated phase of the ceasefire.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
14 Feb. 2026
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If simple, prefabricated asymmetric carbon fibers can act as tiny actuators, engineers may not need complicated coatings or redesigns to build micro-scale devices.—
Rupendra Brahambhatt,
Interesting Engineering,
14 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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In one space, costumes can be custom printed and cut using high-tech printers, while another space houses a room full of sewing machines where costumers spend 80 hours crafting an intricate fur-pattern cape with fringes and sequins.—
Patrick Connolly,
The Orlando Sentinel,
13 Feb. 2026
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In addition to featuring intricate lacework, some pieces stand out for being crafted from chiffon and fluid satins, being punctuated by tiny floral embroideries and cascading daisy embellishments or simply for their buttery hues that add to the classic black and white propositions.—
Sandra Salibian,
Footwear News,
13 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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These are common but complicate long-term planning for federal agencies.—
Hollie Silverman,
MSNBC Newsweek,
30 Sep. 2025
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Despite differing views on a variety of security issues, the group, like Gilpatric’s, reached a clear consensus: nuclear proliferation by any additional country would diminish U.S. power, complicate strategic planning, and increase the likelihood of nuclear use, accidents, and disasters.—
MARIANO-FLORENTINO CUÉLLAR,
Foreign Affairs,
25 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Overwhelm, already a danger to investigators managing a complex case, isn’t helped by online conspiracy theorists and other noisemakers.—
Paige Williams,
New Yorker,
14 Feb. 2026
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The two supermassive black holes in the centers of each galaxy fall into orbit together and, like their stellar-mass cousins, can eventually spiral in and combine (though the details of this are a bit complex).—
Phil Plait,
Scientific American,
13 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Mostly, however, Gee’s sophisticated, stealthily moving film folds any bursts of emotion into its exquisitely dark shadows, letting Evans’ limpid but heartsore music do most of the weeping.—
Guy Lodge,
Variety,
13 Feb. 2026
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At 5,300 years old, any of those explanations complicates the conventional picture of how sophisticated Predynastic Egyptian material science actually was.—
Ryan Brennan,
Kansas City Star,
13 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Convoluted.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/convoluted. Accessed 20 Feb. 2026.
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