devious

CEFRC1

/ˈdiː.vi.əs/

adjective

Türkçe translations

Translating…

In plain English

  1. 01

    adjective

    Dishonest and clever in a way that hides your intentions.

  2. 02

    adjective

    Extra detail

    Roundabout, circuitous, deviating from the direct or ordinary route.

Examples

  • I think Tom is devious.

  • Tom is being kind of devious, isn't he?

At a glance

Sits at C1 on the CEFR scale

Senses
3
Parts of speech
1
Citations
4

Deep Dive

adjective

Extra meaning

  1. Cunning or deceiving, not straightforward or honest, not frank.

More examples

In context

  • The wandering Arab never sets his tent Within her walls; the Shepherd eyes afar Her evil towers, and devious drives his flock.

  • Keeping close in to the shore, they discovered, after two hours run, a fresh stream which burst in a cascade from the mountains, and swept its devious course through the jungle, until it poured its tribute into the waters of the Strait.

  • We went down accordingly into the waste, and began to make our toilsome and devious travel towards the eastern verge.

Quick test

Two questions on this entry. Nothing is scored.

Question 1 · Quick check

The politician used blank tactics to manipulate public opinion before the election.

Practise this properly in the app, where the word comes back before you forget it.

Nearby

Origin

adjective

1590s, "out of the common or direct way," from Latin devius (“out of the way, remote, off the main road”), from de via, from de (“off”) (see de-) + via (“way, road”). Compare deviate. Originally in the Latin literal sense; the figurative sense of "deceitful" is first recorded 1630s. Related to deviously, deviousness. Figurative senses of the Latin word were "retired, sequestered, wandering in the byways, foolish, inconsistent."