sawtooth

American  

[saw-tooth] / ˈsɔˌtuθ /

noun

sawteeth plural

1. one of the cutting teeth of a saw.

2. any of the small parallel roof structures forming a sawtooth roof.

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adjective

1. having a zigzag profile, similar to that of the cutting edge of a saw; sawtoothed; serrate.

   a sawtooth mountain range.

sawtooth British  

/ ˈsɔːˌtuːθ /

adjective

1. (of a waveform) having an amplitude that varies linearly with time between two values, the interval in one direction often being much greater than the other

2. having or generating such a waveform

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Other Word Forms

Inflected Forms

noun

• sawteeth
  plural

Etymology

Origin of sawtooth

First recorded in 1595–1605; saw ¹ + tooth

Example Sentences

The picture shows implied volatility increasing into a spike and then plunging, creating a sawtooth pattern.

From MarketWatch • Jun. 4, 2026

It even uses thinner shoelaces, using a grippy sawtooth pattern that helps them stay tied.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 19, 2026

“I said, ’Cause, man, No. 1: we sculpt an electronic signal into a sine wave that’s smooth, or a sawtooth, which is rough.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 4, 2024

Before long, those electronic textures seeped into her music, with bass drops and drum loops adding raw energy to her sawtooth guitar riffs.

From BBC • Aug. 26, 2024

But they were attacked by a monster with milk-blue eyes and sawtooth skin and teeth like spears jutting from its lower jaw.

From "The Reader" by Traci Chee