devious
de·vi·ous/ˈdiː.vi.əs/adjective
devious is spelled D-E-V-I-O-U-S: 7 letters and 3 syllables (de·vi·ous). It appears 1.1 times per million words in written English, the 27,820th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, devious means “Cunning or deceiving, not straightforward or honest, not frank” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in devious?
| Letters | 7: D-E-V-I-O-U-S |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3: de·vi·ous |
| In writing | 1.1 times per million words; the 27,820th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is devious?
Devious appears 1.1 times per million words in written English, the 27,820th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce devious?
- /ˈdiː.vi.əs/
Devious has 3 syllables, split de·vi·ous in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Forms of devious
- more devious comparative
- most devious superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does devious mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Cunning or deceiving, not straightforward or honest, not frank.
- 2
archaicRoundabout, circuitous, deviating from the direct or ordinary route.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Devious in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense cunning or deceiving, not straightforward:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | rusé, roublard, sournois |
| German | heimtückisch, hinterrücks, unaufrichtig, verschlagen, durchtrieben, hinterhältig |
| Spanish | artero, taimado, engañoso, marrullero, enrevesado, desvioso |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does devious come from?
1590s, "out of the common or direct way," from Latin devius (“out of the way, remote, off the main road”), from de via, from de (“off”) (see de-) + via (“way, road”). Compare deviate. Originally in the Latin literal sense; the figurative sense of "deceitful" is first recorded 1630s. Related to deviously, deviousness. Figurative senses of the Latin word were "retired, sequestered, wandering in the byways, foolish, inconsistent."
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).