According to Guinness World Records, the largest collection of coffee pots belongs to Robert Dahl (Germany) and consists of 27,390 coffee pots as of 2 November 2012, in Rövershagen, Germany.
TORTUOUS
tortuous
(adjective) not straightforward; âhis tortuous reasoningâ
Byzantine, convoluted, involved, knotty, tangled, tortuous
(adjective) highly complex or intricate and occasionally devious; âthe Byzantine tax structureâ; âByzantine methods for holding on to his chairmanshipâ; âconvoluted legal languageâ; âconvoluted reasoningâ; âthe plot was too involvedâ; âa knotty problemâ; âgot his way by labyrinthine maneuveringâ; âOh, what a tangled web we weaveâ- Sir Walter Scott; âtortuous legal proceduresâ; âtortuous negotiations lasting for monthsâ
tortuous, twisting, twisty, winding, voluminous
(adjective) marked by repeated turns and bends; âa tortuous road up the mountainâ; âwinding roads are full of surprisesâ; âhad to steer the car down a twisty trackâ
Source: WordNet® 3.1
Etymology
Adjective
tortuous (comparative more tortuous, superlative most tortuous)
(often, figurative) Twisted; having many turns; convoluted.
(astrology) Oblique; applied to the six signs of the zodiac (from Capricorn to Gemini) that ascend most rapidly and obliquely.
(obsolete) Injurious; tortious.
Usage notes
• This term has strongly negative connotations, perhaps transferred from the similar-sounding adjective torturous.
• Not to be confused with the legal term tortious.
Source: Wiktionary
Tor"tu*ous, a. Etym: [OE. tortuos, L.tortuosus, fr.tortus a twisting, winding, fr. torquere, tortum, to twist: cf. F. tortueux. See Torture.]
1. Bent in different directions; wreathed; twisted; winding; as, a tortuous train; a tortuous train; a tortuous leaf or corolla. The badger made his dark and tortuous hole on the side of every hill where the copsewood grew thick. Macaulay.
2. Fig.: Deviating from rectitude; indirect; erroneous; deceitful. That course became somewhat lesstortuous, when the battle of the Boyne had cowed the spirit of the Jakobites. Macaulay.
3. Injurious: tortious. [Obs.]
4. (Astrol.)
Definition: Oblique; -- applied to the six signs of the zodiac (from Capricorn to Gemini) which ascend most rapidly and obliquely. [Obs.] Skeat. Infortunate ascendent tortuous. Chaucer. --Tor"tu*ous*ly, adv.
– Tor"tu*ous*ness, n.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition
Recent Word Finds
Word of the Day
22 February 2025
ANALYSIS
(noun) the use of closed-class words instead of inflections: e.g., âthe father of the brideâ instead of âthe brideâs fatherâ
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