Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “circuitous” come from?

Circuitous derives from Latin circuitosus, from circuitus (a going around), from circuire (to go around), from circum (around).

circuitous (English): Not direct or to the point; Of a long and winding...

Definitions

  1. Not direct or to the point; Of a long and winding...

Ancestry of “circuitous”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Latincircuitōsus—
2Latincircuituspatrol; circuit; revolution
3Latincircumeō—
4Latineō—
5Proto-ItaliceōI go
6Proto-Italicejō—
7Proto-Indo-Europeanh₁éytito go, to be going
8Proto-Indo-Europeanh₁ey-to go

Words derived from “circuitous”

  • circuitously
  • circuitousness
  • uncircuitous
Every word from Proto-Indo-European h₁ey- →