convoluted
KON-vuh-loo-tidadjMeaning so twisted and complicated that it is hard to follow
Memory hook CON-VOLUTE: ROLLED up in knots. The signposts at the crossroads point every which way, and the directions twist around and back. Jamal gives up: the route is convoluted.
The directions to the cabin were so convoluted that we got lost twice.
In context The movie’s plot was convoluted: twins swapped places, a villain turned out to be a hero, and three different maps led to the same treasure.
Similar complicated, twisted, tangled, unclear
Opposite simple, direct, clear
From Latin convolutus, “rolled together,” from convolvere: con (together) + volvere (to roll).