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zigzag

zigzag

12 3.1
A line or path that turns sharply from side to side
  • noun
  • /ˈzɪɡˌzæɡ/
translation icon : zigzag
  • If a warship maintained a decent speed and a zigzag course, it was safe.
  • zigzag dance
  • zigzag pattern
  • zigzag line

Ultimately science is not a straight line, it's a zigzag, OK?

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Examples

  • Ultimately science is not a straight line, it's a zigzag, OK?

  • Science progresses in, you know, a very zigzag path with lots of blind alleys, false starts and so on.

  • It's not a straight line, it's a zigzag line.

  • I saw the walls of the mansion split along the zigzag crack.

    Fiction book (2001)
  • They're running a zigzag course.

  • The straw between them tips one way, then the other, a zigzag, like lightning.

    Fiction book (1998)
  • They're sailing into the wind by tacking back and forth on this zigzag course.

  • Here, a tortuous zigzagging trail known as the Serpent Path makes its way to the top.

  • Brandy loved the tight-packed zigzag clouds of early morning, like a fish's scales.

    Fiction book (1997)
  • The road ahead was not smooth; it followed a zigzag pattern through the hills.

Antonyms

1.0

In a direct line without turning

Compounds

A North American plant with zigzag stems and small yellow flowers in woodlands

How Winding

labyrinth
31 7.4
zigzag
12 3.1
bend
77 1.2
straight line
49 1.0

Surface Forms

zigzag singular
zigzags plural

Morphology

zigzag = zig + zag (transparent) = zig + zag

As a noun, the line or course described by alternating 'zig' and 'zag' is a direct compound meaning.

Etymology

Zigzag as a noun comes from joining zig and zag, which copy back-and-forth turns, so a 'zigzag' is a line or path that makes sharp, side-to-side angles.