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lateral

 - 6 dictionary results

lat⋅er⋅al

  [lat-er-uhl]
Use lateral in a Sentence
–adjective
1. of or pertaining to the side; situated at, proceeding from, or directed to a side: a lateral view.
2. pertaining to or entailing a position, office, etc., that is different but equivalent or roughly equivalent in status, as distinguished from a promotion or demotion: a lateral move.
3. Phonetics. articulated so that the breath passes on either or both sides of the tongue, as l.
–noun
4. a lateral part or extension, as a branch or shoot.
5. Mining. a small drift off to the side of a principal one.
6. Phonetics. a lateral speech sound.
7. Football. lateral pass.
–verb (used without object)
8. Football. to throw a lateral pass.
9. to move laterally or sideways: migrating birds lateraling down into Cape May.
–verb (used with object)
10. Football. to throw (the ball) in a lateral pass.
Origin:
1590–1600; < L laterālis of the side, equiv. to later- (s. of latus) side + -ālis -al 1

Related forms:
lat⋅er⋅al⋅ly, adverb
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To lateral
lat·er·al   (lāt'ər-əl)   
adj.  

  1. Of, relating to, or situated at or on the side.

  2. Of or constituting a change within an organization or a hierarchy to a position at a similar level, as in salary or responsibility, to the one being left: made a lateral move within the company.

  3. Linguistics Of, relating to, or being a sound produced by breath passing along one or both sides of the tongue.

n.  

  1. A lateral part, projection, passage, or appendage.

  2. Football A lateral pass.

  3. Linguistics A lateral sound, such as (l).

v.   lat·er·aled also lat·er·alled, lat·er·al·ing also lat·er·al·ling, lat·er·als also lat·er·als Football

v.   intr.
To execute a lateral pass.
v.   tr.
To pass (the ball) sideways or backward.

[Middle English, from Old French, from Latin laterālis, from latus, later-, side.]
lat'er·al·ly adv.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

lateral 
1561 (implied in laterally), from L. lateralis "belonging to the side," from latus (gen. lateris) "side" (see oblate (n.)). As a type of pass to the side in U.S. football, it is attested from 1934.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: lat·er·al
Pronunciation: 'lat-&-r&l, 'la-tr&l
Function: adjective
: of or relating to the side; especially, of a body part : lying at or extending toward the right or left side : lying away from the median axis of the body lateral to the heart> lateral branch of the axillary artery>
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Medical Dictionary

lateral lat·er·al (lāt'ər-əl)
adj.

  1. Relating to or situated at or on the side.

  2. Situated or extending away from the median plane of the body.

  3. Relating to the left or right lateral region of the abdomen.

n.
A lateral part, position, or appendage.
lat'er·al·ly adv.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Encyclopedia

lateral

in phonetics, a consonant sound produced by raising the tip of the tongue against the roof of the mouth so that the airstream flows past one or both sides of the tongue. The l sounds of English, Welsh, and other languages are laterals

Learn more about lateral with a free trial on Britannica.com.

Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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