lateral

English

Etymology

From Latin laterālis (“belonging to the side”), from latus (“a side”)

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA: /ˈlæt.rəl/
• (US) IPA: /ˈlæt.ɚ.əl/

Adjective

lateral (comparative more lateral, superlative most lateral)

1. To the side; of or pertaining to the side.

   Instead of a promotion, I opted for a lateral move to a similar position in the marketing department.

2. (anatomy) Pertaining to the left or right of the body; further from the midline.

   The medial side of the knee faces the other knee, while the outer side of the knee is lateral.

   A fish senses changes in hydrodynamic pressure with its lateral line.

3. (Can we verify⁽⁺⁾ this sense?) (botany) Pertaining to the girth of an organ, rather than its thickness or length.
4. (linguistics) Pertaining to sounds that are generated by partially blocking the egress of the airstream with the tip of the tongue touching the alveolar ridge, leaving space on one or both sides of the occlusion for the air passage.

Antonyms

• (anatomy): medial
• (geometric): longitudinal, vertical

Coordinate terms

• (human anatomy direction adjectives) anterior,‎ distal,‎ dorsal,‎ lateral,‎ medial,‎ posterior,‎ proximal,‎ ventral ^{(Category: en:Medicine) [edit]}

Translations

of or pertaining to the side

• Finnish: sivuttainen (fi), sivu- (fi)
• Russian: боковой (ru) (bokovoj)

• Serbo-Croatian: бочни (sh), латералан (sh)

pertaining to the left or right of the body

• Finnish: kylki- (fi), ulko- (fi)

• Russian: латеральный (ru) (lateralʹnyj)

botany: pertaining to the girth of an organ

linguistics: pertaining to certain sounds

• Finnish: lateraalinen (fi)

Noun

lateral (plural laterals)

1. an object, such as a passage or a protrusion, that is situated on the side of something else
2. (linguistics) a sound produced through lateral pronunciation (such as /l/ in lateral)
3. (American football) a lateral pass

See also

• lateral consonant on Wikipedia.Wikipedia:lateral consonant

Verb

lateral (third-person singular simple present laterals, present participle lateralling or lateraling, simple past and past participle lateralled or lateraled)

1. To move (oneself or something) in a lateral direction
2. (American football) To execute a lateral pass

Related terms

• bilateral
• trilateral
• quadrilateral
• collateral
• unilateral

External links

• lateral in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
• lateral in The Century Dictionary, The Century Co., New York, 1911

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Spanish

Adjective

lateral m and f (plural laterales)

1. lateral, to the side