detour
verb/ˈdiːtʊə(r)/, /ˈdiːtɔː(r)/
/ˈdiːtʊr/
[intransitive, transitive] (especially North American English)Verb Forms
| present simple I / you / we / they detour | /ˈdiːtʊə(r)/, /ˈdiːtɔː(r)/ /ˈdiːtʊr/ |
| he / she / it detours | /ˈdiːtʊəz/, /ˈdiːtɔːz/ /ˈdiːtʊrz/ |
| past simple detoured | /ˈdiːtʊəd/, /ˈdiːtɔːd/ /ˈdiːtʊrd/ |
| past participle detoured | /ˈdiːtʊəd/, /ˈdiːtɔːd/ /ˈdiːtʊrd/ |
| -ing form detouring | /ˈdiːtʊərɪŋ/, /ˈdiːtɔːrɪŋ/ /ˈdiːtʊrɪŋ/ |
- to take a longer route in order to avoid a problem or to visit a place; to make somebody/something take a longer route
- detour + adv./prep. The President detoured to Chicago for a special meeting.
- detour something I would detour the endless stream of motor homes.
- detour somebody/something + adv./prep. State troopers were detouring southbound trucks off Route 1 onto Route 16.
Word Originmid 18th cent. (as a noun): from French détour ‘change of direction’, from détourner ‘turn away’.Definitions on the go
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detour