zigzag
English edit
Alternative forms edit
Etymology edit
Attested from 1712. Borrowed from French zigzag (attested from 1662),[1] possibly from a Germanic source via Walloon ziczac (although German Zickzack is attested only from 1703). Also, possibly from the shape of the letter Z, which appears twice in the word.
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
zigzag (plural zigzags)
- A line or path that proceeds by sharp turns in alternating directions.
- One of these sharp turns.
Translations edit
line or path
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Adjective edit
zigzag (not comparable)
- Moving in, or having a zigzag.
- 1819 December 20 (indicated as 1820), Walter Scott, chapter II, in Ivanhoe; a Romance. […], volume II, Edinburgh: […] Archibald Constable and Co.; London: Hurst, Robinson, and Co. […], →OCLC, page 20:
- The entrance to this ancient place of devotion was under a very low round arch, ornamented by several courses of that zig-zag moulding, resembling shark's teeth, which appears so often in the more ancient Saxon churches.
- 1855, Elizabeth Gaskell, chapter 6, in North and South[2], volume 2, London: Chapman & Hall, pages 78–79:
- His thoughts were fixed on one subject, and it was an effort to him to follow the zigzag remarks of his children—an effort which he did not make.
- 1866 December 10, Charles Dickens, “No. 1 Branch Line. The Signal-Man.”, in Charles Dickens, editor, Mugby Junction. The Extra Christmas Number of All the Year Round, volume XVI, London: Published at No. 26, Wellington Street; and by Messrs. Chapman and Hall, […], →OCLC, page 21, column 1:
- There, by dint of looking closely about me, I found a rough zig-zag descending path notched out: which I followed.
- 1912 January, Zane Grey, “Surprise Valley”, in Riders of the Purple Sage […], New York, N.Y., London: Harper & Brothers Publishers, →OCLC, page 102:
- Then he addressed a keen-sighted, remembering gaze to the rim-wall above. It was serrated, and between two spears of rock, directly in line with his position, showed a zigzag crack that at night would let through the gleam of sky.
- (US military slang, World War I) Drunk.[2]
Translations edit
moving in or having a zigzag
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Verb edit
zigzag (third-person singular simple present zigzags, present participle zigzagging, simple past and past participle zigzagged)
- To move or to twist in a zigzag manner.
- Synonym: zig and zag
- 1912 January, Zane Grey, “Surprise Valley”, in Riders of the Purple Sage […], New York, N.Y., London: Harper & Brothers Publishers, →OCLC, page 98:
- At the base this vent was dark, cool, and smelled of dry, musty dust. It zigzagged so that he could not see ahead more than a few yards at a time.
- 2002, Malcolm Yorke, Mervyn Peake: My Eyes Mint Gold: A Life, page 298:
- If the first two novels created a new genre — Peakean fantasy — then this third volume zigzags between several: the Bildungsroman, science fiction, social satire, morality tale and dystopian prophecy.
Translations edit
move in a zigzag manner
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Adverb edit
zigzag (comparative more zigzag, superlative most zigzag)
Translations edit
in a zigzag manner or pattern
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References edit
- ^ “zigzag”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.
- ^ * Lighter, Jonathan (1972) “The Slang of the American Expeditionary Forces in Europe, 1917-1919: An Historical Glossary”, in American Speech[1], volume 47, number 1/2, page 119
Dutch edit
Etymology edit
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
zigzag m (plural zigzags, diminutive zigzagje n)
- zigzag (line in a sawtooth pattern)
Derived terms edit
French edit
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
zigzag m (plural zigzags)
Further reading edit
- “zigzag”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.
Indonesian edit
Noun edit
zigzag (first-person possessive zigzagku, second-person possessive zigzagmu, third-person possessive zigzagnya)
Alternative forms edit
Romanian edit
Etymology edit
Noun edit
zigzag n (plural zigzaguri)
Declension edit
Declension of zigzag
singular | plural | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
indefinite articulation | definite articulation | indefinite articulation | definite articulation | |
nominative/accusative | (un) zigzag | zigzagul | (niște) zigzaguri | zigzagurile |
genitive/dative | (unui) zigzag | zigzagului | (unor) zigzaguri | zigzagurilor |
vocative | zigzagule | zigzagurilor |
Spanish edit
Etymology edit
Pronunciation edit
- IPA(key): (Spain) /θiɡˈθaɡ/ [θiɣ̞ˈθaɣ̞]
- IPA(key): (Latin America) /siɡˈsaɡ/ [siɣ̞ˈsaɣ̞]
- Rhymes: -aɡ
- Syllabification: zig‧zag
Noun edit
zigzag m (plural zigzags or zigzagues)
Derived terms edit
References edit
- “zigzag”, in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014
Further reading edit
- “zigzag”, in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014