adjacent

Meanings

1. 1adjectivenot comparable

   Next to or sharing a side, edge, or border with something else.

   Grammar: Usually before a noun or after be; common pattern adjacent to. It does not take more/most.

   Patterns

   • adjacent to something
   • adjacent rooms/buildings
   • an adjacent field

   The clinic is adjacent to the library.

   Please do not park in the adjacent lot.

   Two adjacent desks were pushed together for the project.

2. 2adjectivenot comparablemathematics

   Having a common side or vertex in mathematics, especially of angles or figures.

   Grammar: Before a noun in fixed technical phrases. It is precise: sharing a side or corner is required.

   Patterns

   • adjacent angles
   • adjacent sides
   • adjacent vertices

   Adjacent angles share a vertex and one arm.

   Mark the adjacent sides of the rectangle.

   The two triangles are adjacent along one edge.

Common combinations

adjacent to

The garden adjacent to the station is open at noon.

directly adjacent

Our cabin was directly adjacent to the trail.

adjacent rooms

Adjacent rooms share a thin wall.

adjacent angles

Adjacent angles in the diagram sum to 180 degrees.

Synonyms and how they differ

neighboring

Can mean nearby rather than touching; adjacent stresses being next to or sharing an edge.

adjoining

Stronger: directly connected or sharing a boundary, often rooms.

next-door

Informal for the nearest building or house; adjacent is neutral and broader.

contiguous

Formal and precise for touching borders; less common in daily speech.

Opposites

Commonly confused: adjacent or adjoining? adjacent or adjective?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “adjacent”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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