vertical

American  

[vur-ti-kuhl] / ˈvɜr tɪ kəl /

adjective

1. being in a position or direction perpendicular to the plane of the horizon; upright; plumb.

   Antonyms:

   horizontal

2. of, relating to, or situated at the vertex.

3. of or relating to the cranial vertex.

4. Botany.

   1. (of a leaf ) having the blade in a perpendicular plane, so that neither of the surfaces can be called upper or lower.

   2. being in the same direction as the axis; lengthwise.

5. of, constituting, or resulting in vertical combination.

6. of or relating to a product or service from initial planning to sale.

7. of, relating to, or noting a stratified society, nation, etc.

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noun

• verticals
  plural

1. something vertical, as a line or plane.

2. a vertical or upright position.

3. a vertical structural member in a truss.

vertical British  

/ ˌvɜːtɪˈkælɪtɪ, ˈvɜːtɪkəl /

adjective

1. at right angles to the horizon; perpendicular; upright Compare horizontal

   a vertical wall

2. extending in a perpendicular direction

3. at or in the vertex or zenith; directly overhead

4. economics of or relating to associated or consecutive, though not identical, stages of industrial activity

   vertical integration

   vertical amalgamation

5. of or relating to the vertex

6. anatomy of, relating to, or situated at the top of the head (vertex)

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noun

1. a vertical plane, position, or line

2. a vertical post, pillar, or other structural member

Synonym Usage

See upright.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonverticality
  noun
• nonverticalness
  noun
• subverticalness
  noun
• verticalism
  noun
• verticality
  noun
• verticalness
  noun
• nonvertical
  adjective
• subvertical
  adjective
• unvertical
  adjective
• nonvertically
  adverb
• subvertically
  adverb
• unvertically
  adverb
• vertically
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• verticals
  plural

Etymology

Origin of vertical

First recorded in 1550–60; from Latin verticālis, equivalent to vertic- (stem of vertex ) vertex + -ālis -al ¹

Explanation

Vertical describes something that rises straight up from a horizontal line or plane. A telephone pole or a tree can usually be described as vertical in relation to the ground. The walls of your house — unless there's some terrible problem — are vertical. They rise straight up from the foundation, at a ninety degree angle. When you're standing up, you're vertical, as opposed to when you lie down in a horizontal position on the couch. The terms vertical and horizontal often describe directions: a vertical line goes up and down, and a horizontal line goes across. You can remember which direction is vertical by the letter, "v," which points down.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

vertical verticals

The draft plan, which largely applies to new venues, seeks to “reduce the extent of or remove opportunities for vertical drinking.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 18, 2026

The very first thing I saw there was an anime-style vertical video whose characters barely moved their lips and ended the whole thing with a verbatim “To Be Continue .. ” title card.

From Slate ● Aug. 16, 2026

Looking back on your experience with vertical video so far, what is it that excites you versus traditional television?

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2026

Iraola's sides have become known for fast and vertical counter-attacks but, with Liverpool looking to hold the ball more deliberately, these short passes in build-up are designed to entice opposition pressure before accelerating play.

From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2026

My palm caught hold of the bin’s side wall, which was now nearly vertical.

From "Educated" by Tara Westover

These new verticals have much more promising prospects than cars.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 31, 2026

With the addition of new manufacturing facilities in Silicon Valley, the company is well-positioned to meet growing demand for artificial intelligence and enterprise verticals, said Chief Executive Charles Liang.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 5, 2026

In addition to concern around a downside revision risk to earnings growth, Hims is grappling with “significant competition in its core verticals where growth has slowed dramatically over the past few years,” the analyst noted.

From Barron's ● Mar. 10, 2026

“IP is at the center” — that’s short for intellectual property — “and then they can go execute across all the verticals, whether it’s experiential, merchandise, licensing, films, music, all of it.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 30, 2026

Take any two convenient points P, R, on each side of the semicircle, and 204 raise verticals Pm, Rn to AB, and on these verticals form the scales.

From The Theory and Practice of Perspective by G. A. (George Adolphus) Storey

Related Words

• perpendicular
• steep