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Commonly Confused Words
Tortuous/Torturous
Master confusing words with ease
Kitty corner/Catty corner
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Atlas/Gazetteer
Spoiled/Spoilt
Tortuous vs. Torturous
Tortuous
Having many twists and turns; complex or intricate in structure or path
Examples:
The mountain path was
tortuous
and exhausting.
Negotiations took a
tortuous
route to reach a deal.
His
tortuous
arguments baffled the entire class.
Synonyms:
winding
twisting
convoluted
sinuous
circuitous
Antonyms:
straight
direct
simple
Torturous
/ˈtɔːtʃərəs/
Extremely painful or causing great suffering
Examples:
The road to the summit was a
torturous
journey.
Her decision led to a
torturous
internal conflict.
Reading the dense document was mentally
torturous
.
Synonyms:
agonizing
painful
excruciating
harrowing
severe
Antonyms:
pleasant
comfortable
bearable
Ways to tell them apart:
Remember that
tortuous
has the word
route
hidden inside it, and it describes something with many twists and turns, like a road.
Think of
torture
when you see
torturous
because it relates to something that causes intense pain or suffering.
Both words start with
tort-
, but
tortuous
is more about complex paths and
torturous
is about painful experiences.
Imagine getting lost on a
tortuous
path versus feeling discomfort from a
torturous
situation.
You may need endurance for something
tortuous
, but you need resistance to withstand something
torturous
.
When to use tortuous:
When to use torturous:
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