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ENGLISH · A WORD WITH POSSIBILITIES

detour.

A diversion or deviation from one's original route.

6 characters2 syllables approx.English language

Meaning & usage

noun/ˈdiː.tɔː(ɹ)//ˈdiː.tʊə(ɹ)//dɪˈtʊə/obsolete/dɪˈtɔː/obsolete
  1. A diversion or deviation from one's original route.

  2. A 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.

Where this word comes from

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

verb/ˈdiː.tɔː(ɹ)//ˈdiː.tʊə(ɹ)//dɪˈtʊə/obsolete/dɪˈtɔː/obsolete
  1. To make a detour.

    intransitive
  2. To direct or send on a detour.

    transitive
Where this word comes from

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

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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.

Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.