zigzag

[ zig-zag ]

/ ˈzɪgˌzæg /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR zigzag ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a line, course, or progression characterized by sharp turns first to one side and then to the other.

one of a series of such turns, as in a line or path.

adjective

proceeding or formed in a zigzag: zigzag stitches.

adverb

with frequent sharp turns from side to side; in a zigzag manner: The child ran zigzag along the beach.

verb (used with object), zig·zagged, zig·zag·ging.

to make (something) zigzag, as in form or course; move or maneuver (something) in a zigzag direction: They zigzagged their course to confuse the enemy.

verb (used without object), zig·zagged, zig·zag·ging.

to proceed in a zigzag line or course.

VIDEO FOR ZIGZAG

WATCH NOW: We Asked: The Hardest Words You Have To Explain To Kids

Some words don't seem very complicated or unique ... until you have to explain them to your kid. This father gives us insight into a word he had to explain to his three-year-old, and it wasn't easy!

Origin of zigzag

1705–15; < French; replacing earlier ziczac < French < German zickzack, gradational compound based on Zacke tack¹

OTHER WORDS FROM zigzag

zig·zag·ged·ness

[zig-zag-id-nis] /ˈzɪgˌzæg ɪd nɪs/, noun

Words nearby zigzag

ziff, zig, ziggurat, zigong, ziguinchor, zigzag, zigzag rule, zigzagger, zika, zika virus, zikr

Example sentences from the Web for zigzag

The first was christened by the great etiquette guru Emily Post as “zigzag” eating.

The Strange Way We Eat: Bee Wilson’s ‘Consider the Fork’ |Bee Wilson |October 13, 2012 |DAILY BEAST
Suddenly sharp flashes of lightning darted in zigzag rays through the gloom.

Patchwork |Anna Balmer Myers
Here he deflected toward the mountains, taking the zigzag path that ran like a winding thread among the rocks as it mounted.

Mavericks |William MacLeod Raine
All down the zigzag hill into the town the machinery said nothing at all.

Through East Anglia in a Motor Car |J. E. (James Edmund) Vincent

By-spines (one hundred and fifty to two hundred) very thin, barbed and zigzag, as long as the radius.

Report on the Radiolaria Collected by H.M.S. Challenger During the Years 1873-1876, First Part: Porulosa (Spumellaria and Acantharia) |Ernst Haeckel
At the base of the trunk a calabash is put, and the latex trickles down into this by way of the zigzag cuts.

Rubber |Edith A. Browne

British Dictionary definitions for zigzag

zigzag

/ (ˈzɪɡˌzæɡ) /

noun

a line or course characterized by sharp turns in alternating directions

one of the series of such turns

something having the form of a zigzag

adjective

(usually prenominal) formed in or proceeding in a zigzag

(of sewing machine stitches) produced in a zigzag by a swing needle used for joining stretch fabrics, neatening raw edges, etc

adverb

in a zigzag manner

verb -zags, -zagging or -zagged

to proceed or cause to proceed in a zigzag

(tr) to form into a zigzag

Derived forms of zigzag

zigzaggedness, noun zigzagger, noun

Word Origin for zigzag

C18: from French, from German zickzack, from Zacke point, jagged projection; see tack 1

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

zigzag

noun

adjective

adverb

verb (used with object), zig·zagged, zig·zag·ging.

verb (used without object), zig·zagged, zig·zag·ging.

VIDEO FOR ZIGZAG

WATCH NOW: We Asked: The Hardest Words You Have To Explain To Kids

Origin of zigzag

OTHER WORDS FROM zigzag

Words nearby zigzag

Example sentences from the Web for zigzag

British Dictionary definitions for zigzag

noun

adjective

adverb

verb -zags, -zagging or -zagged

Derived forms of zigzag

Word Origin for zigzag

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

zigzag

noun

adjective

adverb

verb (used with object), zig·zagged, zig·zag·ging.

verb (used without object), zig·zagged, zig·zag·ging.

VIDEO FOR ZIGZAG

WATCH NOW: We Asked: The Hardest Words You Have To Explain To Kids

Origin of zigzag

OTHER WORDS FROM zigzag

Words nearby zigzag

Words related to zigzag

Example sentences from the Web for zigzag

British Dictionary definitions for zigzag

noun

adjective

adverb

verb -zags, -zagging or -zagged

Derived forms of zigzag

Word Origin for zigzag