catawampus
1
9.9
- adjective
- /ˌkætəˈwɑmpəs/
- Informal
- She noticed the rug was laid catawampus across the living room floor.
Examples
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After moving the table, the chairs were all catawampus and needed to be straightened.
-
The old fence was leaning catawampus after the storm passed through.
-
The picture on the wall is catawampus.
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Why is your chair so catawampus?
-
The old fence was leaning catawampus after the storm passed through.
-
She noticed the rug was laid catawampus across the living room floor.
-
After moving the table, the chairs were all catawampus and needed to be straightened.
Synonyms
86
2.5
Not straight in shape, like a path or a smile
16
6.0
Not straight or level and turned to one side
12
3.2
At an angle so it runs from one side to the other
2
7.9
At an angle across the corner of a street or room
1
7.2
At an angle, not straight
1
7.9
Diagonally across the street from another place
1
7.8
On the opposite corner from a place like a shop or house
At a corner diagonally across an intersection from another place
Placed diagonally across from something at the opposite corner
Antonyms
How Crooked
Surface Forms
Etymology
The word catawampus comes from playful American speech, like the similar word cattywampus, and one popular idea is that it paints the picture of a cat sitting at an angle. A helpful way to remember it is to think of something 'askew' or 'diagonal', like a rug laid 'kitty-corner' across a room, so catawampus means 'not straight' or 'off to one side'.