1 horizontal | Definition of horizontal

horizontal

adjective
hor·​i·​zon·​tal | \ ËŒhȯr-É™-ˈzän-tᵊl How to pronounce horizontal (audio) , ËŒhär-\

Definition of horizontal

1a : of or relating to the apparent junction of earth and sky : situated near the horizon
b : parallel to, in the plane of, or operating in a plane parallel to the horizon or to a baseline : level horizontal distance a horizontal engine
2 : relating to, directed toward, or consisting of individuals or entities of similar status or on the same level horizontal mergers horizontal hostility
3 medical : relating to or being transmission (as of a disease) by physical contact or proximity in contrast with inheritance Genes are normally inherited from parents, but they can also be inserted into a genome by viruses, plasmids, and other foreign agents—a phenomenon called horizontal transfer.— Stephan Reebs — compare vertical sense 4

Keep scrolling for more

Other Words from horizontal

horizontal noun
horizontality \ ËŒhȯr-​É™-​ËŒzän-​ˈta-​lÉ™-​tÄ“ How to pronounce horizontality (audio) , ËŒhär-​ \ noun
horizontally \ ËŒhȯr-​É™-​ˈzän-​tᵊl-​Ä“ How to pronounce horizontally (audio) , ËŒhär-​ \ adverb

Examples of horizontal in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

With a knife dipped into flour, make 2 horizontal cuts and 2 vertical cuts to form 9 biscuits. Lisa Yockelson, BostonGlobe.com, "Recipe: Fill these golden cheese biscuits with turkey, mustard-mayo, chutney, and arugula," 5 Aug. 2019 Now the dangers of horizontal gene transfer in India are being felt globally. Ranjit Devraj, Quartz India, "Superbugs have returned to haunt India’s hospitals," 23 July 2019 The first stall happened before a piece of horizontal stabilizer and elevator broke off. Washington Post, "The Latest: Man who videotaped skydivers was on the plane," 22 June 2019 At the very top of the chimney, the bricks present a horizontal surface that water and snow can pool on. Kevin Dupzyk, Popular Mechanics, "So You Want To Fix Your Chimney," 21 Dec. 2018 In the experiment, the mice looked at simple visual stimuli—either vertical or horizontal black bars on a white background. Karen Weintraub, Scientific American, "How to Make a Mouse Hallucinate," 19 July 2019 Nervous flight controllers could only watch their data and listen as Aldrin called down altitude, vertical and horizontal velocity in feet per second. William Harwood, CBS News, "The inside story of Apollo 11's nail-biting descent to the surface of the moon," 15 July 2019 That flag is white, with horizontal and vertical black stripes dividing it into quadrants. Melissa Yeager, azcentral, "New Reno-Phoenix bus service leaves trail of discriminatory rules, chaotic planning," 3 July 2019 The first step was horizontal, the second vertical. Edward Lotterman, Twin Cities, "Real World Economics: Playing monopoly is more than just rolling the dice," 16 June 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'horizontal.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

See More

First Known Use of horizontal

1555, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

History and Etymology for horizontal

see horizon

Keep scrolling for more

Keep scrolling for more

More Definitions for horizontal

horizontal

adjective

English Language Learners Definition of horizontal

: positioned from side to side rather than up and down : parallel to the ground

horizontal

adjective
hor·​i·​zon·​tal | \ ËŒhȯr-É™-ˈzän-tᵊl How to pronounce horizontal (audio) \

Kids Definition of horizontal

 (Entry 1 of 2)

: lying flat or level : parallel to the horizon

Other Words from horizontal

horizontally adverb

horizontal

noun

Kids Definition of horizontal (Entry 2 of 2)

: something (as a line or plane) that is parallel to the horizon

horizontal

adjective
hor·​i·​zon·​tal | \ ËŒhȯr-É™-ˈzänt-ᵊl, ËŒhär- How to pronounce horizontal (audio) \

Medical Definition of horizontal

1 : relating to or being a transverse plane or section of the body
2a : relating to or being transmission (as of a disease) by physical contact or proximity in contrast with inheritance — compare vertical
b : of or relating to horizontal gene transfer

Other Words from horizontal

horizontally \ -​ᵊl-​Ä“ How to pronounce horizontally (audio) \ adverb

Keep scrolling for more

horizontal

adjective
hor·​i·​zon·​tal | \ ËŒhȯr-É™-ˈzän-tÉ™l, ËŒhär- How to pronounce horizontal (audio) \

Legal Definition of horizontal

: relating to, directed toward, or consisting of individuals or entities of similar status or on the same level