By ‧ zan ‧ tine /baɪˈzæntaɪn, -tiːn, bɪ- $ ˈbɪz ə ntiːn, -taɪn/ BrE AmE adjective
[ Date: 1500-1600 ; Language: Late Latin ; Origin: Byzantinus , from Byzantium Turkish city (now Istanbul), from Greek Byzantion ]
1 . ( also byzantine ) complicated and difficult to understand:
the byzantine complexity of our tax laws
2 . relating to the Byzantines or the Byzantine Empire:
a 5th-century Byzantine church