late 14c., "winding or roundabout way, especially in speaking," usually plural, from Old French ambages, from Latin ambages "circumlocutions" (see ambagious).
Entries linking to ambage
ambagious adj.
"winding, devious, circuitous," 1650s, from French ambagieux, from Latin ambagiosus, from ambages "circuits, avoidings, circumlocutions," from amb- "around" (from PIE root *ambhi- "around") + agere "to set in motion, drive; to do, perform; keep in movement" (from PIE root *ag- "to drive, draw out or forth, move").