horizontal

adjective

hor·i·zon·tal | \ ˌhȯr-ə-ˈzän-tᵊl,

ˌhär-\

Definition of horizontal

1a : of or relating to the apparent junction of earth and sky : situated near the horizon

b : parallel to, in the plane of, or operating in a plane parallel to the horizon or to a baseline : level horizontal distance a horizontal engine

2 : relating to, directed toward, or consisting of individuals or entities of similar status or on the same level horizontal mergers horizontal hostility

3 medical : relating to or being transmission (as of a disease) by physical contact or proximity in contrast with inheritance Genes are normally inherited from parents, but they can also be inserted into a genome by viruses, plasmids, and other foreign agents—a phenomenon called horizontal transfer.— Stephan Reebs — compare vertical sense 4

Other Words from horizontal More Example Sentences Learn More about horizontal

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Other Words from horizontal

horizontal noun

horizontality \ ˌhȯr-ə-ˌzän-ˈta-lə-tē ,

ˌhär- \ noun

horizontally \ ˌhȯr-ə-ˈzän-tᵊl-ē ,

ˌhär- \ adverb

Examples of horizontal in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The situation in the Permian underscores just how plentiful natural gas has become in the U.S. since companies using hydraulic-fracturing and horizontal-drilling techniques began unlocking vast amounts of it from shale-rock formations. — Rebecca Elliott, WSJ, "In Booming Oil Field, Natural Gas Can Be Free," 27 Dec. 2018 My signature design stamp is a room or hallway done in horizontal stripes. — Heidi Mitchell, House Beautiful, "This Lake Michigan House Was Built With Summertime In Mind," 16 Aug. 2018 Notifications on the pane are each separated by a horizontal line, and these will show short previews of the content (usually the app name, time, and two lines of text). — Ron Amadeo, Ars Technica, "Review: Google’s Wear OS 2.0 can’t fix its obsolete smartwatch hardware," 28 Sep. 2018 Here’s how: In the app, click on the three horizontal lines at the bottom right corner, then click Settings & Privacy, then Settings, then Security and Login. — Katherine Bindley, WSJ, "How to Check If Your Facebook Account Was Breached," 28 Sep. 2018 Open your Alexa app on your smartphone or tablet, tap the menu icon (the three horizontal lines on the upper left corner) then tap Skills. — Kim Komando, Fox News, "21 clever Alexa commands you will use again and again," 9 June 2018 Each horizontal line in the chart is two feet from the ones above and below it. — Michael Beller, SI.com, "What's Behind the Incredible Success of Cardinals Starting Pitcher Miles Mikolas?," 23 May 2018 Grawlix were the symbols deployed to convey foul language; briffits were the clouds often found at the end of hites (horizontal lines indicating speed). — Ali Bahrampour, chicagotribune.com, "Mort Walker, whose 'Beetle Bailey' was a comic-page staple for decades, dies at 94," 27 Jan. 2018 In the dining room, the gold-and-pearl horizontal lines on the custom wallpaper were created by applying successive layers of paint, varnish, and marble powder. — Ian Phillips, ELLE Decor, "Seventh Heaven," 1 Aug. 2012

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'horizontal.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.