lateral

1 of 3

adjective

lat·​er·​al ˈla-tə-rəl How to pronounce lateral (audio)
 also  ˈla-trəl
1
: of or relating to the side
a lateral view
2
: situated on, directed toward, or coming from the side
the lateral branches of a tree
3
: extending from side to side
the lateral axis of an airplane
4
phonetics : produced with passage of breath around the side of a constriction formed with the tongue
\l\ is lateral
laterally adverb

lateral

2 of 3

noun

1
: a branch from the main part (as in an irrigation or electrical system)
2
: a pass in football thrown parallel to the line of scrimmage or in a direction away from the opponent's goal
3
: a lateral speech sound

lateral

3 of 3

verb

lateraled; lateraling; laterals

intransitive verb

: to throw a lateral

Did you know?

Lateral shows up in all kinds of contexts. A lateral job change is one that keeps you at about the same job level and salary. A coach might have special drills to improve his players' lateral speed and agility. The British speak of "lateral thinking", thinking that grabs ideas that may not seem to be relevant but turn out to work well—what we might call "thinking outside the box". But we know lateral best from football. A lateral pass is a pass of the ball between teammates that usually goes to the side and slightly backward from the direction in which they're advancing; unlike a forward pass, a lateral may be made from any position, and any number may be made in a single play.

Examples of lateral in a Sentence

Adjective the lateral force of an earthquake from the lateral view you can see how thick the wall really is
Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
Still, to create a better system of lateral learning (and to standardize tactics), top commanders must get involved. Mick Ryan, Foreign Affairs, 5 Feb. 2024 As a result, workers are more willing to take a lower-paying job, make a lateral move, or seek out alternative job opportunities. Caroline O'Donovan, Washington Post, 3 Feb. 2024 The bit at the end there was Nadia not quite managing to do lateral arm raises. IEEE Spectrum, 2 Feb. 2024 There was only one significant difference between made and missed free throw shots: positioning the forearm almost parallel with an imaginary lateral axis. Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 1 Jan. 2024 Babies and children are lateral thinkers, innately creative, and yet their mental health—an overused phrase that covers everything from resilience to empathy, memory to the ability to form friendships—takes work. Nell Frizzell, Vogue, 17 Feb. 2024 The first will help repair and line 7.5 miles of the main canal and some small lateral sections. The Arizona Republic, 29 Jan. 2024 The main deck salon, for instance, has glazing that extends below the lateral walkways to ensure a view of the water even from the sofas. Rachel Cormack, Robb Report, 24 Jan. 2024 Oral cancers typically grow on the lateral and ventral surfaces of the tongue.16 3. Amanda Gardner, Health, 21 Jan. 2024
Noun
With San Francisco facing a second-and-10 from the Kansas City 21, Brock Purdy threw a quick lateral to Jennings on the left side. Josh Dubow, USA TODAY, 12 Feb. 2024 Canals slice between orchards and acres of silage, pushing all-important irrigation water through a network of laterals from farm to farm. Jake Bittle, WIRED, 6 Jan. 2024 But with 1:25 left in the game, a 25-yard completion to Travis Kelce followed by Kelce’s lateral to Toney for a 24-yard touchdown was wiped out after officials called offside on Toney. Jeff Fedotin, Forbes, 10 Dec. 2023 The laterals are pruned so that only two or three bud eyes remain. Rita Perwich, San Diego Union-Tribune, 6 Jan. 2024 Red is used for advancing fire indicators, yellow for laterals and blue for where the fire may have backed up. John Riha, Discover Magazine, 12 Nov. 2023 Cincinnati commuters probably know about the trash that piles up along Interstates 71 and 75, the Norwood lateral, Ronald Reagan Highway – the list goes on. Erin Couch, The Enquirer, 10 Sep. 2023 Cable Lateral Raises: Her trainer also loves to assign her cable lateral raises to build up her shoulders and glutes. Dominique Fluker, Essence, 8 Sep. 2023 Jones also infamously scored the game-winning touchdown against the New England Patriots on a botched lateral on the final play. Jordan Mendoza, USA TODAY, 6 Sep. 2023
Verb
The Blazers and Bulldogs were held to empty drives on the next two possessions before UAB put together a strong drive into Louisiana Tech territory that ended with Williamson grabbing his second pick of the game and lateral it to Khalil Ladler for an 80-yard touchdown return. Evan Dudley, al, 1 Nov. 2020 By all accounts, there were no orders from Bill Belichick or Matt Patricia to lateral the ball and try to create a scoring play. Ben Volin, BostonGlobe.com, 22 Dec. 2022 Bullock completed about a 10-yard pass to Cameron Augurson on a dig route, and Augurson was able to lateral the ball back to Jacob Emmers. Dallas News, 6 Sep. 2022 New England coach Bill Belichick declined to say whether the Patriots players had been instructed to lateral on the final play or reminded not to so with the score tied. Mark Inabinett | Minabinett@al.com, al, 18 Dec. 2022 Florida State tried to lateral the ball multiple times, but Clemson eventually picked up a fumble and scored. Christopher Smith, al, 31 Oct. 2021 The vast majority of the time, when a football team tries to lateral its way down the field in desperation, the result benefits the defending the team. Chris Bumbaca, USA TODAY, 12 Sep. 2020 Quarterback Ryan Tannehill connected with Kenny Stills, who tossed the ball to DeVante Parker, who lateraled to Kenyan Drake, who ran 52 yards for the game-winning score, outrunning Rob Gronkowski en route to the end zone. Jim Reineking, USA TODAY, 1 Apr. 2020 Brady recovered and lateraled to Ben Watson, who sent it back to Edelman, who flung it back to Thuney. BostonGlobe.com, 31 Dec. 2019

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'lateral.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Adjective, Noun, and Verb

Middle English laterale, from Latin lateralis, from later-, latus side

First Known Use

Adjective

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

1578, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1930, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of lateral was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near lateral

Cite this Entry

“Lateral.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/lateral. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

lateral

1 of 2 adjective
lat·​er·​al ˈlat-ə-rəl How to pronounce lateral (audio)
ˈla-trəl
1
: of or relating to the side : located on, directed toward, or coming from the side
2
: being a part of the boundary of a solid in geometry that is not a base or completely included in a base
a lateral edge of a prism
a lateral face
laterally
adverb

lateral

2 of 2 noun
: a pass in football thrown to the side or to the rear

Medical Definition

lateral

adjective
lat·​er·​al ˈlat-ə-rəl, ˈla-trəl How to pronounce lateral (audio)
: 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
the lungs are lateral to the heart
the lateral branch of the axillary artery

More from Merriam-Webster on lateral

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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