Tortuous: meaning, pronunciation and examples
Tortuous adjective. Full of twists and turns; also, needlessly long and complicated.
How to say it
TOR-choo-us/ˈtɔːtʃʊəs/
3 syllables, stressed on the first (TOR).
Tortuous in a sentence
The tortuous mountain road left half the coach feeling sick.
After a tortuous explanation, we were more confused than before.
Similar and opposite
Similar:
- winding
- twisting
- convoluted
- meandering
Opposite:
- straight
- direct
- simple
Usage note
Tortuous means twisting; torturous means agonising. A tortuous road winds; a torturous one is agony to travel. Both come from Latin torquere, to twist.
Don’t confuse with torturous
torturous (adjective): Causing great pain or suffering; agonising.
Where tortuous comes from
From Latin tortus, twisted, from torquere, to twist.
Test yourself
Which word fills the gap?
After a _____ explanation, we were more confused than before.
- tortuous
- imminent
- continual
Show the answer
tortuous: After a tortuous explanation, we were more confused than before.