horizontal axis

Meaning

1. 1nouncountable

   The line on a graph that runs left to right, along which values are measured.

   Grammar: Countable: say 'the horizontal axis' or 'a horizontal axis'. The plural is 'horizontal axes'.

   Patterns

   • on the horizontal axis
   • along the horizontal axis
   • the horizontal axis shows something

   The months are marked on the horizontal axis, and the sales figures go up the vertical axis.

   If you plot the temperature on the horizontal axis, the pattern becomes much easier to see.

   Draw the horizontal axis first, then add the scale.

Word forms

Common combinations

plot something on the horizontal axis

Plot the time on the horizontal axis and the distance on the vertical one.

along the horizontal axis

The numbers increase steadily along the horizontal axis.

the horizontal axis shows

The horizontal axis shows the years from 2000 to 2020.

label the horizontal axis

Always label the horizontal axis so readers know what it means.

Synonyms and how they differ

x-axis

The usual short name in mathematics; it is the same line, but the term is more technical and assumes the standard coordinate setup.

baseline

Used for the bottom line of a chart; it often happens to be the horizontal axis, but a baseline can also be a starting value rather than an axis.

Opposites

Word family

horizontal adjective

Running from side to side, flat like the horizon.

horizontally adverb

In a side-to-side direction.

Commonly confused: horizontal axis or vertical axis?

Practice

Make it your own

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

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