convoluted
adj.extremely complicated and difficult to follow. You use this to describe things like stories, rules, or paths that have too many twists and turns.
adj.extremely complex and difficult to follow; having many overlapping folds or twists. Often used to describe abstract concepts like logic or bureaucracy, though it retains its literal sense in biological descriptions.
“The plot of the movie was so convoluted that I got lost.”
“The legal process for applying for a visa was so convoluted that many applicants had to hire a lawyer.”
“The philosopher's argument was so convoluted that even his most dedicated students struggled to identify the core premise amidst the layers of historical references and technical jargon.”
Typically used as a predicative adjective after linking verbs like 'be', 'become', or 'seem', or as an attributive adjective before a noun.
“As she enters, another man runs out – a climate activist with a rather convoluted grudge.”
“Normally, I would tell my hosts what I had dreamt the previous night, tossing one more convoluted narrative into the pot of dreams they would share with each other over breakfast.”
From convolute + -d.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.