winding

/wɪndɪŋ/

/ˈwaɪndɪŋ/

Other forms: windings; windingly

Use the adjective winding to describe something with twists and turns, like a winding country road or a little winding mountain stream.

A path through the woods that has plenty of bends and curves in it is winding, and a river that curls and meanders down to the sea is also winding. The Beatles song "The Long and Winding Road" describes a twisting, indirect road. Winding has an Old English root, the word windan, which means "to turn, twist, or wind."

Definitions of winding

1. noun

   the act of winding or twisting
   synonyms: twist, wind

   type of:

   rotary motion, rotation

   the act of rotating as if on an axis
2. adjective

   marked by repeated turns and bends
   “winding roads are full of surprises”

   synonyms: tortuous, twisting, twisty, voluminous

   crooked

   having or marked by bends or angles; not straight or aligned
3. adjective

   of a path e.g.
   “a winding country road”

   synonyms: meandering, rambling, wandering

   indirect

   not direct in spatial dimension; not leading by a straight line or course to a destination