z
abbreviation
zone.
z
1 Americanabbreviation
z
2
American
Symbol, Mathematics.
-
an unknown quantity or variable.
-
(in Cartesian coordinates) the z- axis.
Z
3
American
[zee, zed, iz-erd]
/ zi, zɛd, ˈɪz ərd /
Or
z
noun
-
Z's,
plural
-
Zs,
plural
-
z's,
plural
-
zs
plural
-
the 26th letter of the English alphabet, a consonant.
-
any spoken sound represented by the letter Z or z, as in zero, zigzag, or buzzer.
-
something having the shape of a Z .
-
a written or printed representation of the letter Z or z.
-
a device, as a printer's type, for reproducing the letter Z or z.
Z
4
American
Z
5
American
Symbol.
-
the 26th in order or in a series.
-
(sometimes lowercase) the medieval Roman numeral for 2000.
-
Chemistry, Physics. atomic number.
-
Electricity. impedance.
z.
6
American
abbreviation
Z
1
British
symbol
-
any unknown, variable, or unspecified factor, number, person, or thing
-
chem atomic number
-
physics impedance
-
zone
-
currency zaïre
abbreviation
z
2
British
/ ziː, zɛd /
noun
-
the 26th and last letter and the 20th consonant of the modern English alphabet
-
a speech sound represented by this letter, in English usually a voiced alveolar fricative, as in zip
-
-
something shaped like a Z
-
( in combination )
a Z-bend in a road
-
z
3
British
symbol
-
the z- axis or a coordinate measured along the z- axis in a Cartesian or cylindrical coordinate system
-
an algebraic variable
z
Idioms
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
For example: “If we do this, could it prevent us from reaching the revenue target because x, y and z might happen?”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 19, 2025
Fyfield Manor, near Wallingford in Oxfordshire, posted a video to its TikTok page on Monday with the caption: "When you ask your gen z daughter to write the marketing script."
From BBC ● Sep. 5, 2024
"The dumbbell thus acts a bit like the needle on a compass, allowing us to read off the z coordinate according to its orientation," says Prof. Dr. Dieter Meschede.
From Science Daily ● Mar. 5, 2024
If z = 4, 16, 37, 58, 89, 145, 42 or 20, then ijk is a sad number.
From Scientific American ● Oct. 24, 2023
In three dimensions, you just have a z axis as well.
From "The Scientists" by John Gribbin
Spaniard Tato won the Visa d'Or prize for news photography for his coverage of Generation Z protests in Madagascar.
From Barron's ● Sep. 5, 2026
Phair’s son, who is Gen Z, often says the phrase “it’s time to get the bag.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 3, 2026
With premium cards becoming more popular, including among Gen Z customers, many cardholders have complained about overcrowded lounges.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 31, 2026
"If you're a millennial, or you're the older part of Gen Z, you're kind of over going out to the pub every weekend," she said.
From BBC ● Aug. 30, 2026
Z was perched in a tree near the bear bush.
From "Ruby Holler" by Sharon Creech
“Miles, without a z. My apologies for the stuff I said about your dad in our battle.”
From "On the Come Up" by Angie Thomas
For further details, see C. Rose, Beitr. z. vergl.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 13, Slice 2 "Hearing" to "Helmond" by Various
This is always a case simply of imperfections in h and z. a.
From The Mind of the Child, Part II The Development of the Intellect, International Education Series Edited By William T. Harris, Volume IX. by William T. Preyer
C. z. zodius is known to occur in the foot hills north of the Cerro Viejo, the mountain from which C. g. atratus was described above.
From Four New Pocket Gophers of the Genus Cratogeomys from Jalisco, Mexico by Robert J. Russell
Pronounce the s like z. shame, etc., was ashamed and was quietly making a hole in the shingle roof so as to get away.
From Jamaican Song and Story Annancy stories, digging sings, ring tunes, and dancing tunes by Walter Jekyll
Generation Z’s enthusiasm about artificial intelligence is cooling fast.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 19, 2026
We often compare Gen Z’s present to older generations’ memories instead of their reality.
From Salon ● Aug. 15, 2026
Only a mint green handbag and full sleeves of tattoos suggested that Gen Z’s reigning rock star had settled in to talk about his new album “Oh Yeah?”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 22, 2026
Ultimately, Gen Z’s aggressive behavior doesn’t reflect a calculated tolerance for high risk.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 7, 2026
We push messages under each other’s doors, written in the cryptic language of the aliens, which is filled with x’s and Z’s and must be decoded.
From "Cat's Eye" by Margaret Atwood
Credit-savvy and big-spending customers don’t represent all Gen Zs.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 18, 2026
Generationally, the Zs don’t seem to share much common ground with “Wuthering Heights” author Emily Brontë.
From Salon ● Feb. 21, 2026
Perhaps it was due to the large volume of young children stood in the crowd amongst us Gen Zs and millennials.
From BBC ● Jul. 5, 2025
This week, Felix Salmon, Emily Peck, and Elizabeth Spiers debate one of the great questions of our time: Do Gen Zs even get checks?
From Slate ● Sep. 7, 2024
He always curled the tip of his Ks, and his Zs looked like chubby 3s.
From "I Will Always Write Back" by Caitlin Alifirenka and Martin Ganda
It’s like a mini sensory deprivation pod, perfect for catching some z’s mid-flight.
From Salon ● Dec. 16, 2024
Horses have specialized anatomical features that enable them to stay on their hooves while catching some z's.
From Scientific American ● Jun. 12, 2023
Further research will be required to demonstrate that other kinds of sharks catch underwater z’s like the draughtsboard shark.
From New York Times ● Mar. 9, 2022
Finally, ties were broken based on things like which word was the most fun to say or whether any of the word choices included especially cool letters like z’s or w’s.
From Slate ● Sep. 2, 2015
Only Momma could decipher the lacy handwriting with its long, tall letters all bunched together and the lines running into one another because of the long-tailed, fancy z’s and f’s and g’s.
From "Homecoming" by Cynthia Voigt
This is Siesta of a Hungarian Snake: s sz sz SZ sz SZ sz Zs zs Zs zs zs z Morgan was born into a middle-class family in Hyndland, in Glasgow's west end.
From The Guardian ● Aug. 19, 2010
Almost immediately, on a shortwave band, they can hear someone talking in a strange language full of zs and s’s.
From "All the Light We Cannot See" by Anthony Doerr
They think if they talk like they had an egg in there mouth an put in lots of zs its French.
From "Same old Bill, eh Mable!" by G. William Breck
C or cz is pronounced as English ts; cs as English ch; ds as English j; zs as French j; gy as dy.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 13, Slice 8 "Hudson River" to "Hurstmonceaux" by Various
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
