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
Davis took a circuitous route to get back.
—
Steve Megargee, Chicago Tribune, 17 Mar. 2026
Nosková has taken a more circuitous route to her second WTA 1000 semifinal, but her game is suited to the conditions at Indian Wells, especially on its hotter days, and has the power to take the match out of Sabalenka’s hands — if Sabalenka does not do it to her first.
—Ava Wallace, New York Times, 13 Mar. 2026
All of these little circuitous bits of water are the canals, and those are the beavers’ highway systems.
—Mary Divine, Twin Cities, 1 Mar. 2026
And even that route was circuitous.
—Evan Grant, Dallas Morning News, 24 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for circuitous
Steve Megargee, Chicago Tribune, 17 Mar. 2026
Nosková has taken a more circuitous route to her second WTA 1000 semifinal, but her game is suited to the conditions at Indian Wells, especially on its hotter days, and has the power to take the match out of Sabalenka’s hands — if Sabalenka does not do it to her first.
—Ava Wallace, New York Times, 13 Mar. 2026
All of these little circuitous bits of water are the canals, and those are the beavers’ highway systems.
—Mary Divine, Twin Cities, 1 Mar. 2026
And even that route was circuitous.
—Evan Grant, Dallas Morning News, 24 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for circuitous
Recent Examples of Synonyms for circuitous
Adjective
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An economic opening would be a roundabout way of getting to the end goal, one close Rubio friend told USA TODAY.—
Francesca Chambers,
USA Today,
24 Mar. 2026
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The government arrived at that figure in a roundabout manner.—
Avi Asher-Schapiro,
ProPublica,
24 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Shinjuku Gyoen is a rambling blend of European and Japanese formal gardens that becomes a focal point of the cherry blossom season in late March.—
Stephen Kelly,
TheWeek,
26 Mar. 2026
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The four leads are overconfident and loutish, spending their time drinking, rambling, and clumsily working through their worries about the future.—
James Folta,
Literary Hub,
25 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Essentially, if a natural gas pipeline is being approved, the process doesn’t need to consider the indirect effects of burning the gas at a power plant.—
Jordan Blum,
Fortune,
30 Mar. 2026
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The Indonesian foreign ministry said today that the peacekeeper who was killed was an Indonesian national and that three others were injured by indirect artillery fire, Reuters reported.—
Charlene Gubash,
NBC news,
30 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Even the blandest overtures can whip him into a frantic, pornographic, prolix ecstasy.—
Anna Wiener,
New Yorker,
9 Mar. 2026
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Ronald, who with his shock of white hair and prolix tendencies comes off like a frazzled professor, keeps to a more limited circuit writing out of his house and his office.—
Alison Willmore,
Vulture,
4 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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The robot includes a perception system with dual RGB and RGB-D cameras, optional 3D LiDAR, and a six-microphone circular array for voice interaction.—
Atharva Gosavi,
Interesting Engineering,
31 Mar. 2026
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The circular concrete structure stands in stark contrast to the rectangular steel-and-glass buildings that surround it.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
30 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Circuitous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/circuitous. Accessed 2 Apr. 2026.
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