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
By any measure, Shane’s bold life and circuitous path to fame were anything but typical.
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Dan Allen, NBC News, 20 Sep. 2024
Now, after a circuitous route to the screen, a TV version executive produced and largely written by Taddeo, starring Shailene Woodley, DeWanda Wise and Betty Gilpin, premieres Friday on Starz.
—Meredith Blake, Los Angeles Times, 13 Sep. 2024
Snyder had to take an awfully circuitous path to today’s two-part director’s cut release of Rebel Moon on Netflix.
—Brian Davids, The Hollywood Reporter, 2 Aug. 2024
Grimes has previously addressed her ex-partner’s growing animosity towards trans people in a more circuitous fashion.
—Samantha Riedel, Them, 26 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for circuitous 
Dan Allen, NBC News, 20 Sep. 2024
Now, after a circuitous route to the screen, a TV version executive produced and largely written by Taddeo, starring Shailene Woodley, DeWanda Wise and Betty Gilpin, premieres Friday on Starz.
—Meredith Blake, Los Angeles Times, 13 Sep. 2024
Snyder had to take an awfully circuitous path to today’s two-part director’s cut release of Rebel Moon on Netflix.
—Brian Davids, The Hollywood Reporter, 2 Aug. 2024
Grimes has previously addressed her ex-partner’s growing animosity towards trans people in a more circuitous fashion.
—Samantha Riedel, Them, 26 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for circuitous
Recent Examples of Synonyms for circuitous
Adjective
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Republican attorneys general in Kansas and Missouri, who led the legal challenges against SAVE, argue that President Joe Biden is essentially trying to find a roundabout way to forgive student debt after the Supreme Court blocked its sweeping debt cancellation plan in June 2023.Annie Nova, CNBC, 21 Oct. 2024
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Given Advance Colorado’s conservative background, Democrats have accused the group of running the ballot measure as a roundabout way of reducing government spending on existing programs.Seth Klamann, The Denver Post, 6 Oct. 2024
Adjective
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There is more than 178 feet of beach and ocean frontage, which can be accessed via a rambling wooden staircase.Emma Reynolds, Robb Report, 5 Nov. 2024
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Some, of course, will find this style of writing off-putting and too rambling or the prose verging on purple, the narrative perhaps not story-driven enough.Erik Kain, Forbes, 10 Oct. 2024
Adjective
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This growth was driven by an increase in both direct and indirect revenues.Quartz Bot, Quartz, 8 Nov. 2024
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The Irish scored on an indirect free kick from inside the penalty area to tie the game with 10 seconds left as Mitch Ferguson’s shot deflected off a Cardinal defender and past goalkeeper Rowan Schnebly, whose time wasting had drawn a yellow card to set up the free kick.Michael Nowels, The Mercury News, 7 Nov. 2024
Adjective
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Words, including those of artists themselves—as prolix in their way as critics, curators, and historians—can serve vision but can also deflect from it.Barry Schwabsky, ARTnews.com, 3 Sep. 2019
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In 1949, a young American artist named Ray Johnson left Black Mountain College near Asheville, N.C., moved to New York City and began to explore his prolix talents, both visual and verbal.Roberta Smith, New York Times, 30 May 2024
Adjective
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Newsletter Ever since the ancient Greeks first made observations of the circular Moon and the skies, scientists have known that the Earth is a sphere.Discover Magazine, Discover Magazine, 15 Nov. 2024
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To clean the mesh grilles—the soft, wiry panels in the earbud—dip your toothbrush into a cup of micellar water, and while holding the earbud upright so the mesh is facing you, gently rub the bristles, in a circular motion, across each mesh panel for 15 seconds.Julia Ries, Outside Online, 14 Nov. 2024
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Cite this Entry
“Circuitous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/circuitous. Accessed 21 Nov. 2024.
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