laterally
Americanadverb
-
from side to side; along a plane.
You can force plants to grow wide and bushy by training the growth tips to grow laterally rather than cutting off the tops of the shoots.
-
in a way that involves a broadly equivalent position, office, etc..
She worked as a nurse for many years and then, moving laterally, was employed as an area supervisor in the social work field.
Etymology
Origin of laterally
Explanation
If you've ever seen a crab walking along the sand at the beach, you may have noticed that it walks laterally, meaning it moves sideways rather than forward. Moving laterally refers to shifting side to side rather than forward, backward, or vertically. This term is common in sports, like when a soccer player moves laterally to avoid an opponent. In the workplace, moving laterally means changing positions or job titles within the same company, without a promotion or demotion. The word comes from the Latin lateralis, meaning "side," and applies to both physical movement and career changes.
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.
“Growth and development doesn’t just mean a promotion—you also can expand and grow and develop laterally, and maybe in a different function area,” Anas said.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 24, 2026
She has been in intensive therapy this week, posting videos of her squatting, jumping and moving laterally in a knee brace.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 7, 2026
Unlike universal injunctions, which are top-down blocks, collateral estoppel works laterally — one court at a time, but each building on the last.
From Salon • Jun. 30, 2025
"The pedalling feels very different and the overall sensations of moving on the water, either laterally or vertically, is wildly different from any kind of cycling," Lambie says.
From BBC • Sep. 2, 2024
The elevator comes to a slight pause and then begins to move laterally to the left.
From "Mockingjay" by Suzanne Collins
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.
