highly complex or intricate and occasionally devious; "the Byzantine tax structure"; "Byzantine methods for holding on to his chairmanship"; "convoluted legal language"; "convoluted reasoning"; "the plot was too involved"; "a knotty problem"; "got his way by labyrinthine maneuvering"; "Oh, what a tangled web we weave"- Sir Walter Scott; "tortuous legal procedures"; "tortuous negotiations lasting for months"
Used in a Sentence
tortuous
How to use tortuous in a sentence. Example sentences and definitions for tortuous.
Editorial note
But for a lot of men, being a 33-year old virgin is going to be tortuous.
Examples5
Definitions3
Parts of speech1
Quick take
highly complex or intricate and occasionally devious; "the Byzantine tax structure"; "Byzantine methods for holding on to his chairmanship"; "convoluted legal language"; "convoluted reasoning"; "the plot was too involved"; "a knotty problem"; "got his way by labyrinthine maneuvering"; "Oh, what a tangled web we weave"- Sir Walter Scott; "tortuous legal procedures"; "tortuous negotiations lasting for months"
Meaning at a glance
The clearest senses and uses of tortuous gathered in one view.
marked by repeated turns and bends; "a tortuous road up the mountain"; "winding roads are full of surprises"; "had to steer the car down a twisty track"
not straightforward; "his tortuous reasoning"
Definitions
Core meanings and parts of speech for tortuous.
adjective
highly complex or intricate and occasionally devious; "the Byzantine tax structure"; "Byzantine methods for holding on to his chairmanship"; "convoluted legal language"; "convoluted reasoning"; "the plot was too involved"; "a knotty problem"; "got his way by labyrinthine maneuvering"; "Oh, what a tangled web we weave"- Sir Walter Scott; "tortuous legal procedures"; "tortuous negotiations lasting for months"
See also: Byzantine, convoluted, involved, knotty, tangled
adjective
marked by repeated turns and bends; "a tortuous road up the mountain"; "winding roads are full of surprises"; "had to steer the car down a twisty track"
See also: twisting, twisty, winding, voluminous
adjective
not straightforward; "his tortuous reasoning"
Example sentences
But for a lot of men, being a 33-year old virgin is going to be tortuous.
Doubting everything… It is a workshop of the possible… where thought proceeds along sensuous paths, tortuous streets, most often blind alleys.
To try and define the term "daydream" as being equivalent to "make solid plans" so that you can equate daydreaming with criminal conspiracy is some of the most tortuous logic I have seen in a while.
Cass Everitt had been doing some personal work on the iPhone, so he helped me get everything set up for local iPhone development here, which is a lot more tortuous than you would expect from an Apple product.
The utility here is that if you're a medical researcher you can just order up this stuff for your research lab in a bottle, so to speak, instead of going through the tortuous business of isolating and purifying it in useful quantities.
Frequently asked questions
Short answers drawn from the clearest meanings and examples for this word.
How do you use tortuous in a sentence?
But for a lot of men, being a 33-year old virgin is going to be tortuous.
What does tortuous mean?
highly complex or intricate and occasionally devious; "the Byzantine tax structure"; "Byzantine methods for holding on to his chairmanship"; "convoluted legal language"; "convoluted reasoning"; "the plot was too involved"; "a knotty problem"; "got his way by labyrinthine maneuvering"; "Oh, what a tangled web we weave"- Sir Walter Scott; "tortuous legal procedures"; "tortuous negotiations lasting for months"
What part of speech is tortuous?
tortuous is commonly used as adjective.