devious

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Related to devious: deviously

de·vi·ous

(dē′vē-əs)

adj.

1. Not straightforward; shifty: a devious character.

2. Departing from the correct or accepted way; erring: achieved success by devious means.

3. Deviating from the straight or direct course; roundabout: a devious route.

4. Away from a main road or course; distant or removed.

[From Latin dēvius, out-of-the-way : dē-, de- + via, road; see wegh- in Indo-European roots.]

de′vi·ous·ly adv.

de′vi·ous·ness n.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

devious

(ˈdiːvɪəs)

adj

1. not sincere or candid; deceitful; underhand

2. (of a route or course of action) rambling; indirect; roundabout

3. going astray from a proper or accepted way; erring

[C16: from Latin dēvius lying to one side of the road, from de- + via road]

ˈdeviously adv

ˈdeviousness n

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

de•vi•ous

(ˈdi vi əs)

adj.

1. departing from the most direct way; circuitous; roundabout: a devious course.

2. departing from the proper or accepted way: a devious procedure.

3. not straightforward or sincere; shifty.

4. without definite course; vagrant: a devious current.

[1590–1600; < Latin dēvius out-of-the way, erratic =dē- de- + -vius adj. derivative of via way; see -ous]

de′vi•ous•ly, adv.

de′vi•ous•ness, n.

devious

- Its literal meaning is "out of the way," from Latin de via—applied to a place that was remote because it was off the main road.

devious

adjective

1. sly, scheming, calculating, tricky, crooked (informal), indirect, treacherous, dishonest, wily, insidious, evasive, deceitful, underhand, insincere, surreptitious, double-dealing, not straightforward She tracked down the other woman by devious means.
sly direct, straight, frank, straightforward, blunt, honest, downright, candid, forthright

2. indirect, roundabout, wandering, crooked, rambling, tortuous, deviating, circuitous, excursive He followed a devious route.
indirect direct, straight, straightforward, forthright, unswerving, undeviating

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

devious

adjective

1. Marked by treachery or deceit:

disingenuous, duplicitous, guileful, indirect, lubricious, shifty, sneaky, underhand, underhanded.

2. Not taking a direct or straight line or course:

anfractuous, circuitous, circular, indirect, oblique, roundabout, tortuous.

3. Without a fixed or regular course:

erratic, stray, wandering.

Translations

غَيْر مُباشِر، مُلْتَوٍ، خِداعي

klikatýkřivolaký

lumsklusketuhæderlig

abwegig

δόλιος

détourné

hlykkjóttur, króka-

traverso ambiguo errato

aplinkiniu būduklastingumas

aplinkusnegodīgs

slynget snodd

krivolaký

dürüst olmayan

迂回的

devious

[ˈdiːvɪəs] ADJ

1. (= twisting, winding) [path] → tortuoso, sinuoso; [argument] → intrincado, enrevesado

2. (= crafty) [means] → dudoso, artero; [person] → taimado

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

devious

[ˈdiːviəs] adj

[person] → sournois(e), fourbe

[mind] → tortueux/euse

[route] → détourné(e); [means] → détourné(e)

Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

devious

adj

(= deceitful, sly) person → verschlagen, hinterhältig; means, method → hinterhältig, krumm (inf); business, plan, game, attempt → trickreich; by devious means → auf die krumme Tour (inf); to have a devious mind (= be cunning) → ganz schön schlau sein; his/her devious mind → seine/ihre verschlungenen Gehirnwindungen

(= tortuous) route, way → gewunden; by a devious route → auf einem Umweg

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

devious

[ˈdiːvɪəs] adj (person, means, methods, mind) → subdolo/a; (path, argument) → tortuoso/a

Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

devious

(ˈdiːviəs) adjective

not direct; not straightforward. We climbed the hill by a devious route; He used devious methods to get what he wanted.

ˈdeviously adverb

ˈdeviousness noun

devious

a. desviado-a; descaminado-a; extraviado-a.

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References in classic literature ?

In all the devious tracings the course of a sailing-ship leaves upon the white paper of a chart she is always aiming for that one little spot - maybe a small island in the ocean, a single headland upon the long coast of a continent, a lighthouse on a bluff, or simply the peaked form of a mountain like an ant-heap afloat upon the waters.

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The difficulty of tactical maneuvering consists in turning the devious into the direct, and misfortune into gain.

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They lead through poverty and pain, devious and unsure, as of one staggering beneath a burden -

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It dragged her at my heels even now, and when we had got halfway round--a devious, tiresome process, on ground much broken and by a path choked with overgrowth-- I paused to give her breath.

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I cared not to conjecture by what devious ways God had brought her to my side.

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The whole country was then a wilderness, and it was necessary to transport the bag gage of the troops by means of the rivers—a devious but practicable route.

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Sometimes their devious path approached the margin of cliffs below which the river foamed, and boiled, and whirled among the masses of rock that had fallen into its channel.

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Meanwhile the travellers continued to press on their journey with a dispatch which argued the extremity of the Jew's fears, since persons at his age are seldom fond of rapid motion, The Palmer, to whom every path and outlet in the wood appeared to be familiar, led the way through the most devious paths, and more than once excited anew the suspicion of the Israelite, that he intended to betray him into some ambuscade of his enemies.

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The Snake River here wound its devious way between low banks through the great plain of the Three Butes; and was bordered by wide and fertile meadows.

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He worked always to the north, though his way was devious, and it was from the north that he seemed most to apprehend that for which he was looking.

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"One travels through life," he answered, "by devious paths, and a little wandering in the flower-gardens by the way is the lot of every one.

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We will go by devious ways, and so, I hope, will reach Sherwood in safety.

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Adj.	1.	devious - indirect in departing from the accepted or proper way; misleading; "used devious means to achieve success"; "gave oblique answers to direct questions"; "oblique political maneuvers" oblique indirect - extended senses; not direct in manner or language or behavior or action; "making indirect but legitimate inquiries"; "an indirect insult"; "doubtless they had some indirect purpose in mind"; "though his methods are indirect they are not dishonest"; "known as a shady indirect fellow"
	2.	devious - characterized by insincerity or deceit; evasive; "a devious character"; "shifty eyes" shifty untrustworthy, untrusty - not worthy of trust or belief; "an untrustworthy person"
	3.	devious - deviating from a straight course; "a scenic but devious route"; "a long and circuitous journey by train and boat"; "a roundabout route avoided rush-hour traffic" circuitous, roundabout indirect - not direct in spatial dimension; not leading by a straight line or course to a destination; "sometimes taking an indirect path saves time"; "you must take an indirect course in sailing"