rectangle
Americannoun
-
rectangles
plural
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of rectangle
1565–75; < Medieval Latin rēctangulum, Late Latin rēctiangulum right-angled triangle (noun use of neuter of rēctiangulus having a right angle), equivalent to rēcti- recti- + angulum angle 1
Explanation
A rectangle is any shape with four sides and four right angles. All squares are rectangles but not all rectangles are squares (all the sides in a square have to be the same length). The rect in rectangle comes from the Latin rectus, which means "right" or "straight." Because of its right angles, a rectangle has straight sides. Another word with the same root is rectitude, which means moral uprightness. A morally upright person is someone who does the right thing, but doing the right thing doesn't make you a square — or a rectangle.
Vocabulary lists containing rectangle
Geometry - Introductory
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The ACT Math Test: Geometry, List 2
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Geometry - Middle School
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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:
There have been many prominent attempts over the years to solve the problem of accurately representing the surface of a sphere on a flat rectangle, each with its own benefits and drawbacks.
From BBC ● Sep. 5, 2026
Painted after Artemisia returned to Rome after several years in Florence, the roughly life-size, seated figure is folded elegantly into the rectangle of the canvas.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 17, 2026
Yet, anyone born with “19” at the start of their birthyear still remembers how it felt to leave the house without a black rectangle in their hands.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 12, 2026
Carrots and papaya plants have already pushed up through a rectangle of dark soil, thanks to a technique based on organic fertilisers made from a mixture of compost and chicken manure.
From Barron's ● Nov. 26, 2025
Suddenly she remembered her thought in the bathtub: a rectangle inside a triangle.
From "Chasing Vermeer" by Blue Balliett
How long can we all stare at hand-held rectangles?
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 1, 2026
Cut one sheet of puff pastry into four rectangles and arrange them on a parchment-lined sheet pan.
From Salon ● Jul. 20, 2026
Those red rectangles that you step off and get on for people in wheelchairs, those are probably our No. 1 priority, making sure they’re accessible.
From Slate ● Feb. 24, 2026
Nearby, irregular, rusty red rectangles stamped from an unidentified frame are laid end-to-end on a scroll of white paper that runs across a low, horizontal pedestal before bending up to climb a wall.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 29, 2024
Calder had pulled out his pentominoes and was quietly making rectangles on the table next to Mrs. Sharpe’s bed.
From "Chasing Vermeer" by Blue Balliett
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
