detour 1 of 2

as in deviation
a turning away from a course or standard we'll regard this relapse as just a brief detour on your road to recovery from substance abuse

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detour

2 of 2

verb

1
as in to bypass
to avoid by going around we had to detour the construction zone in order to get to the stadium

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2
as in to deviate
to change one's course or direction we had to detour for a few miles around the section of highway under construction

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of detour
Noun
Drivers on three busy south Charlotte roads face detours through May, as crews close one of the roads to replace underground pipes, state highway officials said Tuesday. Joe Marusak, Charlotte Observer, 29 Apr. 2025 The narrative does take a detour near the end though. Fran Ruiz, Space.com, 1 May 2025
Verb
Biscayne Boulevard southbound traffic will be re-routed westbound at Northeast Sixth Street and detoured to Northeast Second Avenue and/or North Miami Avenue. Howard Cohen, Miami Herald, 25 Mar. 2025 Analysts believe the redistribution made the merchant ships that were detouring around the Cape of Good Hope vulnerable to piracy in the western Indian Ocean. Soham Mitra, Lou Robinson and Patrick Gallagher, CNN, 22 Feb. 2025 See All Example Sentences for detour
Recent Examples of Synonyms for detour
Noun
  • The Ramona Community Planning Group on May 1 unanimously approved a minor deviation that allows changes to Spirit of Joy’s original major use permit for their church project at the site, which fell through in 2021.
    Julie Gallant, San Diego Union-Tribune, 6 May 2025
  • This was a deviation from what happens in The Last of Us Part II video game, in which there is no town hall vote.
    Megan McCluskey, Time, 28 Apr. 2025
Verb
  • Also, the final order included a new mechanism that would increase the ability for drugmakers to sell directly to consumers, bypassing pharmacy benefits managers.
    Brian Evans,Yun Li,Fred Imbert, CNBC, 11 May 2025
  • Seven decades later, some politicians and college leaders are becoming increasingly anxious that another president might cause a different world power to bypass the United States.
    Zachary Schermele, USA Today, 9 May 2025
Verb
  • In space, satellites deviated from their trajectories due to the changes in air density caused by the sudden heating triggered by the energetic processes.
    Tereza Pultarova, Space.com, 9 May 2025
  • Industry stakeholders argue that the USCIS’s current two-year requirement deviates from both the law and investor expectations, potentially jeopardizing long-term projects.
    Andy J. Semotiuk, Forbes.com, 23 Apr. 2025
Noun
  • Through at least June 15, no more than 28 arrivals and the same number of departures will be allowed each hour, marking a 28% decrease from the average of 39 that typically take off and land.
    Brian Niemietz, New York Daily News, 22 May 2025
  • SpaceX Dragon to depart from ISS The crew members aboard the station spent time Wednesday, May 21, loading and securing a variety of cargo inside the Dragon spacecraft ahead of its scheduled departure.
    Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 22 May 2025
Verb
  • Chinese producers looked to expand trade to Southeast Asia and other regions to circumvent the U.S. tariffs.
    Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 13 May 2025
  • As promised, High Commander Wharton (Josh Charles) has closed Jezebel's, circumventing the rebellion's plot to massacre Gilead's most unsavory leaders.
    Matt Cabral, EW.com, 6 May 2025
Verb
  • Trump faced charges related to keeping hundreds of classified documents and refusing to turn them over to the FBI while Biden was under investigation for retaining classified documents.
    Sarah D. Wire, USA Today, 18 May 2025
  • The nine-horse sprint turned into a four-horse battle by the final stretch and featured several lead changes.
    Taylor Lyons, Baltimore Sun, 17 May 2025
Verb
  • Make sure to maintain an upright torso and avoid leaning forward or backward.
    Laura Schober, Health, 13 May 2025
  • The key question is whether the data behind digital twins is sound enough to avoid the pitfalls that result in data decay over time (i.e., entropy).
    Mika Newton, Forbes.com, 13 May 2025
Verb
  • Happ’s oblique bothered him the most when attempting to swing.
    Meghan Montemurro, Chicago Tribune, 15 May 2025
  • In between the European trips, Biden had swung back to the United States to be at home in Wilmington, Delaware, for the verdict of his son Hunter Biden's guns case trial.
    Joey Garrison, USA Today, 15 May 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Detour.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/detour. Accessed 25 May. 2025.

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