adjective
tortuous
TOR-choo-us/ˈtɔːrtʃuəs/
Following a course with many turns.
The tortuous road climbs through the hills toward the village.
Etymology
A “twisting” plus “full of” describes something winding through many bends. That physical image extends to indirect, complicated routes of thought or action.
In context
you may have been told particularly if you're a woman that you have either a redundant colon or a tortuous colon or a twisted colon
More examples
- We follow a tortuous trail down to the river.
- The stream follows a tortuous course through the valley.
- The negotiations take a tortuous path toward an agreement.
Forms
tortuous
tortuously adverb — In a winding or indirect way.
tortuousness noun — The quality of having many twists.
Similar words
- winding
- Describes repeated turns without necessarily suggesting difficulty or complexity.
- sinuous
- Emphasizes smooth, flowing curves rather than difficult twists.
- circuitous
- Emphasizes taking a roundabout route rather than many turns.