indirect

in·di·rect

Use indirect in a sentence

adjective

The definition of indirect is a person or thing that is not straight, or not direct and honest.

An example of indirect is a flight that goes from Los Angeles to Denver in order to get to Seattle; an indirect flight.
An example of indirect is a teenager who says they're staying over at a friend's house when they're really going to a party at a friend's house; an indirect answer.

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MLA Style

"indirect." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 13 February 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/Indirect>.

APA Style

indirect. (n.d.). Retrieved February 13th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Indirect

indirect

not direct; specif.,

not straight; deviating; roundabout
not straight to the point, or to the person or thing aimed at: an indirect reply
not straightforward; not fair and open; dishonest: indirect dealing
not immediate; secondary: an indirect result

Origin of indirect

Middle English from Medieval Latin indirectus

Link/Cite

Link to this page

Cite this page

MLA Style

"indirect." YourDictionary, n.d. Web. 13 February 2019. <https://www.yourdictionary.com/Indirect>.

APA Style

indirect. (n.d.). Retrieved February 13th, 2019, from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Indirect

indirect

adjective

Diverging from a direct course; roundabout.
a. Not proceeding straight to the point or object.
b. Not forthright and candid; devious.
Not directly planned for; secondary: indirect benefits.
Reporting the exact or approximate words of another with such changes as are necessary to bring the original statement into grammatical conformity with the sentence in which it is included: indirect discourse.
Logic Involving, relating to, or being the proof of a statement by the demonstration of the impossibility or absurdity of the statement's negation.
Sports Being an indirect free kick.

Related Forms:

in′di·rect′ly
adverb

in′di·rect′ness
noun

THE AMERICAN HERITAGE® DICTIONARY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE, FIFTH EDITION by the Editors of the American Heritage Dictionaries. Copyright © 2016, 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.