: a deviation from a direct course or the usual procedure
especially
: a roundabout way temporarily replacing part of a route
detoured; detouring; detours
: to proceed by a detour
detour around road construction
1
: to send by a circuitous route
detour traffic around an accident
2
: to avoid by going around : bypass
detour an accident site
Synonyms
Examples of detour in a Sentence
Noun
After a number of unexpected detours, we finally arrived at our destination.
The little restaurant is worth a detour.
We had to make a detour around the heaviest traffic.
We took a detour from the main streets.
The road is closed ahead, so traffic will have to follow the detour.
Verb
We detoured around the heaviest traffic.
A police officer was detouring traffic around the scene of the accident.
Traffic will be detoured to 72nd Street.
Recent Examples on the Web
Lucia Kassai, Fortune, 7 Apr. 2024
With the exception of one unwanted detour through a parking lot, it’s been great.
—Larry Magid, The Mercury News, 28 Mar. 2024
Friday, March 22, 2024: This article has been updated to correct a detour street name, which was misidentified by the Colorado Department of Transportation.
—Lauren Penington, The Denver Post, 24 Mar. 2024
Expect delays, look for alternate routes, follow detour signage, and be aware of utility workers, flags, and cones in this area, the release states.
—Nwa Democrat-Gazette, arkansasonline.com, 18 Mar. 2024
Often, the scripts resort to having the characters simply spell out what meaning we’re supposed to take from these detours.
—Angie Han, The Hollywood Reporter, 13 Mar. 2024
And hazardous materials that are not allowed in the tunnels will be diverted on a longer detour.
—Mark Thompson, CNN, 27 Mar. 2024
According to the release, a northbound detour is in place:
East on Colo. 224 (East 74th Avenue),
North on U.S. 85,
East on I-76, then
West on 88th Avenue to Dahlia Street.
—Lauren Penington, The Denver Post, 24 Mar. 2024
Make a detour to visit one of the Driftwood wineries or Dripping Springs' booming distillery district.
—Southern Living Editors, Southern Living, 22 Mar. 2024
Xander Zellner, Billboard, 21 Feb. 2024
The closure will last through Saturday, Jan. 20, at 5 p.m. Drivers will be detoured in both directions.
—Cindy Krischer Goodman, Sun Sentinel, 14 Jan. 2024
The Maryland Transportation Authority said on social media that all lanes are closed in both directions and that traffic is being detoured.
—Landon Mion, Fox News, 26 Mar. 2024
The Maryland Transportation Authority said all lanes were closed in both directions on I-695, with traffic being detoured to I-95 and I-895.
—Megan Cerullo, CBS News, 26 Mar. 2024
When: From 9 p.m. Friday, March 22, to 5 a.m. Monday, March 25.
Alternate Routes: Drivers heading eastbound on I-10 can detour to southbound or eastbound Loop 202 and reconnect with the I-10 near Chandler Boulevard in the Ahwatukee area.
—Brenna Gauchat, The Arizona Republic, 22 Mar. 2024
Biscayne Boulevard southbound traffic will be re-routed westbound at Northeast Sixth Street and detoured to Northeast Second Avenue and/or North Miami Avenue.
—Howard Cohen, Miami Herald, 22 Mar. 2024
Motorists were detoured from I-85 south as officers from the Belmont police traffic division investigated the collision.
—Joe Marusak, Charlotte Observer, 2 Mar. 2024
Click here:Metro's snow detour list This shows routes that could be detoured due to bad road conditions and how those routes might be rerouted.
—The Enquirer, 19 Jan. 2024
Noun
Crude markets in Europe, meanwhile, were pressured higher by the Houthi attacks in the Red Sea, which sent millions of barrels of crude on a detour around Africa, delaying some supplies for weeks.
—Lucia Kassai, Fortune, 7 Apr. 2024
With the exception of one unwanted detour through a parking lot, it’s been great.
—Larry Magid, The Mercury News, 28 Mar. 2024
Friday, March 22, 2024: This article has been updated to correct a detour street name, which was misidentified by the Colorado Department of Transportation.
—Lauren Penington, The Denver Post, 24 Mar. 2024
Expect delays, look for alternate routes, follow detour signage, and be aware of utility workers, flags, and cones in this area, the release states.
—Nwa Democrat-Gazette, arkansasonline.com, 18 Mar. 2024
Often, the scripts resort to having the characters simply spell out what meaning we’re supposed to take from these detours.
—Angie Han, The Hollywood Reporter, 13 Mar. 2024
And hazardous materials that are not allowed in the tunnels will be diverted on a longer detour.
—Mark Thompson, CNN, 27 Mar. 2024
According to the release, a northbound detour is in place:
East on Colo. 224 (East 74th Avenue),
North on U.S. 85,
East on I-76, then
West on 88th Avenue to Dahlia Street.
—Lauren Penington, The Denver Post, 24 Mar. 2024
Make a detour to visit one of the Driftwood wineries or Dripping Springs' booming distillery district.
—Southern Living Editors, Southern Living, 22 Mar. 2024
Verb
His career was detoured in 2007 when he was arrested for an armed robbery.
—Xander Zellner, Billboard, 21 Feb. 2024
The closure will last through Saturday, Jan. 20, at 5 p.m. Drivers will be detoured in both directions.
—Cindy Krischer Goodman, Sun Sentinel, 14 Jan. 2024
The Maryland Transportation Authority said on social media that all lanes are closed in both directions and that traffic is being detoured.
—Landon Mion, Fox News, 26 Mar. 2024
The Maryland Transportation Authority said all lanes were closed in both directions on I-695, with traffic being detoured to I-95 and I-895.
—Megan Cerullo, CBS News, 26 Mar. 2024
When: From 9 p.m. Friday, March 22, to 5 a.m. Monday, March 25.
Alternate Routes: Drivers heading eastbound on I-10 can detour to southbound or eastbound Loop 202 and reconnect with the I-10 near Chandler Boulevard in the Ahwatukee area.
—Brenna Gauchat, The Arizona Republic, 22 Mar. 2024
Biscayne Boulevard southbound traffic will be re-routed westbound at Northeast Sixth Street and detoured to Northeast Second Avenue and/or North Miami Avenue.
—Howard Cohen, Miami Herald, 22 Mar. 2024
Motorists were detoured from I-85 south as officers from the Belmont police traffic division investigated the collision.
—Joe Marusak, Charlotte Observer, 2 Mar. 2024
Click here:Metro's snow detour list This shows routes that could be detoured due to bad road conditions and how those routes might be rerouted.
—The Enquirer, 19 Jan. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'detour.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near detour
Cite this Entry
“Detour.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/detour. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
detour
1 of 2 noun
de·tour
ˈdē-ˌtu̇(ə)r 
also di-ˈtu̇(ə)r
: a departure from a direct course or the usual procedure
especially
: a roundabout way temporarily replacing a regular route
detour
2 of 2 verb
: to send or proceed by a detour
detour traffic around an accident
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