Detour

//ˈdiː.tɔː(ɹ)// noun, verb

noun, verb ·Moderate ·High school level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    A diversion or deviation from one's original route.

    "On the third day I made a detour westward to avoid the country of the Band-lu, as I did not care to be detained by a meeting with To-jo."

  2. 2
    a roundabout road (especially one that is used temporarily while a main route is blocked) wordnet
  3. 3
    An temporary alternative route available to motorists away from the usual route due to a closure for repairs, dealing with an accident, or some event rendering the usual route unusable.
Verb
  1. 1
    To make a detour. intransitive

    "Petrelis detoured away from southern activities to visit Chicago and help draw attention to lesbian, gay and AIDS issues during the Illinois primary March 16."

  2. 2
    travel via a detour wordnet
  3. 3
    To direct or send on a detour. transitive

Synonyms

All synonyms
diversionaberrancyaberrationambagesback doorback road

Example

More examples

"If a high hill stood between A and B, it was important to decide whether the line should climb over it, pierce it with a tunnel, or make a detour to avoid it."

Etymology

Borrowed from French détour, from détourner (“turn away”).

Related phrases

equal detour point

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.