Meaning & use
horizontal
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Meanings
adjectivecomparable
Lying flat or running straight across from side to side, parallel to the ground, instead of standing up or running up and down.
Grammar: Used before a noun or after a verb: a horizontal beam, or The shelf is horizontal.
Patterns
- a horizontal line
- horizontal to something
Hang the picture so the top edge is perfectly horizontal.
The painter added a thick horizontal stripe across the wall.
Leave the bottle in a horizontal position so the cork stays damp.
adjectivebefore a nounbusiness
Involving people or groups at the same level in an organization or system, rather than a chain of command from top to bottom.
Grammar: Usually sits before a noun: horizontal communication, not a person described as horizontal.
Patterns
- horizontal integration
- horizontal structure
The company favors horizontal teamwork between departments instead of strict orders from above.
A horizontal merger joins two firms that sell similar products.
Horizontal communication helps staff share ideas without waiting for a manager.
Common combinations
- horizontal line
- Draw a horizontal line across the bottom of the graph.
- horizontal axis
- Time is plotted along the horizontal axis.
- horizontal surface
- Place the level on a horizontal surface to test it.
- horizontal bar
- The gymnast swung around the horizontal bar.
- horizontal stripes
- Horizontal stripes on a shirt can make you look wider.
- in a horizontal position
- The patient was kept in a horizontal position until help came.
Synonyms and how they differ
- level
- Level stresses that a surface has no slope at all, while horizontal describes direction relative to the ground or to an upright line.
- flat
- Flat describes a surface with no bumps or curves, whereas horizontal is about orientation and can describe a thin line or beam.
- sideways
- Sideways is more casual and describes movement or direction, while horizontal is the neutral technical word for orientation.
Opposites
Word family
- horizon noun
- the line where the earth or sea seems to meet the sky
- horizontally adverb
- in a horizontal direction or position
- horizontality noun
- the state of being horizontal
Commonly confused: horizontal or horizon?
horizontal vs horizon
A horizon is a noun, the far line where land meets sky, whereas horizontal is the adjective for something flat and level.
Practice
The carpenter checked that the shelf was perfectly ___ before fixing it to the wall.
Choose one answer.
A shelf must lie flat and level, which is horizontal. Vertical and upright mean standing straight up, and diagonal means slanted.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “horizontal”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.