devious
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English[edit]
Etymology[edit]
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."
Pronunciation[edit]
Adjective[edit]
devious (comparative more devious, superlative most devious)
- cunning or deceiving, not straightforward or honest, not frank
- roundabout, circuitous, deviating from the direct or ordinary route
- 1801, Robert Southey, “(please specify the page)”, in Thalaba the Destroyer, volume (please specify |volume=I or II), London: […] [F]or T[homas] N[orton] Longman and O. Rees, […], by Biggs and Cottle, […], OCLC 277545047:
- The wandering Arab never sets his tent
Within her walls; the Shepherd eyes afar
Her evil towers, and devious drives his flock.
- 1839, Frederick Marryat, The Phantom Ship:
- 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.
- 1886, Robert Louis Stevenson, Kidnapped
- We went down accordingly into the waste, and began to make our toilsome and devious travel towards the eastern verge.
Translations[edit]
cunning or deceiving, not straightforward
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roundabout, circuitous, deviating
- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Translations to be checked
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