as in winding
marked by a long series of irregular curves
a tortuous mountain road marked by numerous hairpin turns
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Recent Examples of tortuous
Flying anywhere for the Thanksgiving holiday is likely to be tortuous for legions of travelers — even if the government shutdown ends today, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned today.
—
Jay Blackman, NBC news, 8 Nov. 2025
More recently, Geran variants painted black with special material to hide from radar fly higher and with tortuous routes to evade Ukrainian defense teams.
—David Brennan, ABC News, 1 Aug. 2025
The family would turn to the stacks of journals Greg left behind, which detailed his tortuous decline but left much unanswered.
—Christopher Kamrani, New York Times, 24 July 2025
The development concludes a tortuous bargaining process that lasted longer than the term of the three-year contract.
—Katie Kilkenny, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2019
See All Example Sentences for tortuous
Jay Blackman, NBC news, 8 Nov. 2025
More recently, Geran variants painted black with special material to hide from radar fly higher and with tortuous routes to evade Ukrainian defense teams.
—David Brennan, ABC News, 1 Aug. 2025
The family would turn to the stacks of journals Greg left behind, which detailed his tortuous decline but left much unanswered.
—Christopher Kamrani, New York Times, 24 July 2025
The development concludes a tortuous bargaining process that lasted longer than the term of the three-year contract.
—Katie Kilkenny, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2019
See All Example Sentences for tortuous
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tortuous
Adjective
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What happened next – her death 21 years later and Wilson's application to seal his criminal record 37 years later – are all part of a long and winding case before the Ohio Supreme Court on Jan. 7.—
Laura A. Bischoff,
The Columbus Dispatch,
5 Jan. 2026
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More broadly, its long and winding path back into the spotlight is a reminder that preparedness depends not only on scientific breakthroughs, but on whether those breakthroughs are carried forward before opportunity is lost.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
29 Dec. 2025
Adjective
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Further, this development enhances the potential of renewable energy by unlocking perovskite’s ability to be printed onto flexible surfaces, such as curved windows, lightweight camping gear, and even clothing fabrics.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
12 Jan. 2026
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Then Kim brings another rock from behind his back, a small, curved black stone.—
Sadia Shepard,
New Yorker,
11 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Some of the trees stand as much as 140-feet, while others are twisted and bent due to rocky soil and lack of sunlight.—
Mark Price,
Charlotte Observer,
7 Jan. 2026
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All that remained was now a gray field of ash and twisted metal, almost unrecognizable even in form.—
Jonathan Taplin,
Rolling Stone,
7 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Hathaway also styled her hair with bold side bangs while modeling the serpentine gold jewelry.—
Lara Walsh,
InStyle,
12 Jan. 2026
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Its serpentine curves have entranced drivers for decades, and even lured some to their death.—
Clara Harter,
Los Angeles Times,
9 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Tortuous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tortuous. Accessed 21 Jan. 2026.
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