tortuous

adjectives

highly complex or intricate and occasionally devious
"the Byzantine tax structure"; "Byzantine methods for holding on to his chairmanship"; "convoluted legal language"; "convoluted reasoning"; "the plot was too involved"; "a knotty problem"; "got his way by labyrinthine maneuvering"; "Oh, what a tangled web we weave"- Sir Walter Scott; "tortuous legal procedures"; "tortuous negotiations lasting for months"
is derived from
marked by repeated turns and bends
"a tortuous road up the mountain"; "winding roads are full of surprises"; "had to steer the car down a twisty track"
is derived from
is derived from
not straightforward
"his tortuous reasoning"
is derived from
is similar to
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"