lateral

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin laterālis (“belonging to the side”), from latus (“the side or flank”) +‎ -ālis (“-al”, adjectival suffix).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈlæt.ə.ɹəl/, /ˈlæt.ɹəl/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ætəɹəl

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, zootomy) Situated on one side or other of the body or of an organ, especially in the region furthest from the median plane.

      Antonym: medial

      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. (pathology) Affecting the side or sides of the body, or confined to one side of the body.
   4. (physics) Acting or placed at right angles to a line of motion or strain.
2. (UK) Non-linear or unconventional, as in, lateral thinking.
3. (phonetics, phonology) (of a consonant, especially the English clear l) Pertaining to speech sounds generated by partially blocking the egress of the airstream with the tongue, leaving space on one or both sides of the occlusion for air passage.

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).

   Coordinate terms: approximant, fricative, nasal, trill, plosive

3. (American football) A lateral pass.
4. (business) An employee hired for a position at the same organizational level or salary as their previous position.
5. A lateral canal, a canal built alongside an existing stream.
   • 1956, United States House Appropriations Committee, Public Works Appropriations for 1957, page 703:

     […] Canal and laterals, section 4, and the first part of section 5; and Miller Canal and laterals.

   • 1971, Howard S. Latham, James M. Verzuh, Reducing Hazards to People and Animals on Reclamation ..., page 7:

     Two-thirds of the drownings, or 103, occurred along the back of the canal or lateral. […] 4 drownings per year occurred in reaches of canals or laterals protected by fencing.

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.

References

• “lateral”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.
• “lateral”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.
• William Dwight Whitney, Benjamin E[li] Smith, editors (1911), “lateral”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., →OCLC.

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin laterālis.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central, Balearic) [lə.təˈɾal]
• IPA^(key): (Valencia) [la.teˈɾal]

Adjective

lateral m or f (masculine and feminine plural laterals)

1. lateral

Noun

lateral m or f by sense (plural laterals)

1. wingback
2. (castells) a casteller in the pinya, who stands beside the baix and holds the legs of one of the segons to prevent them from swaying sideways

Further reading

• “lateral” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
• “lateral”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2025.
• “lateral” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• “lateral” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

Etymology

In the 20th century, from Latin laterālis.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /lateˈʁaːl/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -aːl

Adjective

lateral (strong nominative masculine singular lateraler, not comparable)

1. lateral

Etymology

Internationalism, borrowed from Dutch lateraal, from French latéral, from Latin laterālis.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /la.tə.ˈral/
• Rhymes: -ral
• Hyphenation: la‧tê‧ral

Adjective

latêral

1. lateral:
   1. to the side; of or pertaining to the side
   2. (phonetics, phonology) pertaining to speech sounds generated by partially blocking the egress of the airstream with the tongue, leaving space on one or both sides of the occlusion for air passage

Noun

latêral (plural lateral-lateral)

1. lateral:
   1. (anatomy) an object, such as a passage or a protrusion, that is situated on the side of something else
   2. (phonetics, phonology) a sound produced through lateral pronunciation (such as /l/ in lateral)

Related terms

Further reading

• “lateral” in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia, Jakarta: Agency for Language Development and Cultivation – Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, 2016.

Adjective

lateral (not comparable)

1. lateral

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -al, -aw
• Hyphenation: la‧te‧ral

Adjective

lateral m or f (plural laterais)

1. lateral (of, pertaining to or located in the side)
2. of lesser importance

Noun

lateral f (plural laterais)

1. (sports) sideline (line defining the side boundary of a playing field)
2. (sports) throw-in (set-piece where the ball is thrown back into play)
3. (phonetics) lateral (sound in which the airstream proceeds along the sides of the tongue)

Noun

lateral m or f by sense (plural laterais)

1. (sports) winger (offensive player who plays on either side of the centre)

   Synonym: ala

Etymology

Borrowed from French latéral, from Latin lateralis.

Adjective

lateral m or n (feminine singular laterală, masculine plural laterali, feminine and neuter plural laterale)

1. lateral

Etymology

From Latin laterālis.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /lateˈɾal/ [la.t̪eˈɾal]
• Rhymes: -al
• Syllabification: la‧te‧ral

Adjective

lateral m or f (masculine and feminine plural laterales)

1. lateral, to the side
2. (linguistics) lateral

Noun

lateral m or f by sense (plural laterales)

1. (linguistics) lateral
2. (soccer) full-back, fullback (a player who plays on the left or right side of defence)
3. (soccer) throw-in

   Synonyms: saque lateral, saque de banda

See also

• (soccer) extremo, carrilero, defensa, central

Further reading

• “lateral”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 2024 December 10

Adjective

lateral (not comparable)

1. to the side, lateral
2. (linguistics) lateral

Noun

lateral c

1. (linguistics) a lateral consonant, a lateral

Further reading

• lateral in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)
• lateral in Svensk ordbok (SO)