circuitous.

Taking an indirect, roundabout route or approach instead of proceeding directly.

Use it for

Words that belong together

• a circuitous route
• circuitous reasoning

On the page

They reached the house by a circuitous route through the old quarry.

Her circuitous answer returned to the question without addressing it.

Usage notes

Primary category: literary. Forms: Comparative more circuitous; superlative most circuitous where gradation is meaningful. Legacy lexical fields mirror sense 1 only. Use numbered sense fields for all meanings.