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Webster 1913 Edition

Anfractuous

An-frac′tu-ous

,
Adj.
[L.
anfractuosus
, fr.
anfractus
a turning, a winding, fr. the unused
anfringere
to wind, bend;
an-
, for
amb-
+
fractus
, p. p. of
frangere
to break: cf. F.
anfractueux
.]
Winding; full of windings and turnings; sinuous; tortuous;
as, the
anfractuous
spires of a horn
.
–
An-frac′tu-ous-ness
,
Noun.

Webster 1828 Edition

Anfractuous

ANFRAC'TUOUS

,
Adj.
[L. anfractus, of amb, about, and fractus, broken. See Break.]
Winding; full of windings and turnings; written less correctly, anfractuose.

Definition 2024

anfractuous

anfractuous

English

Adjective

anfractuous ‎(comparative more anfractuous, superlative most anfractuous)

  1. sinuous, twisty, winding.
    • 1995, Neal Stephenson, The Diamond Age:
      It was just that the story was anfractuous.
  2. craggy, rugged, coarse, rough, uneven.
    • 1920, T. S. Eliot, Poems, A. A. Knopf:
      Paint me the bold anfractuous rocks / Faced by the snarled and yelping seas.

Etymology

Late Latin anfractuosus, from Latin anfractus ‎(“bend, curve”).

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ænˈfɹæktjʊəs/

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