sidelong

[sahyd-lawng, -long]

adjective

1. directed to one side.

   a sidelong glance.

2. inclined or slanting to one side.

3. indirect; roundabout.

   sidelong comments about his appearance.

adverb

1. toward the side; obliquely.

sidelong

/ ˈsaɪdˌlɒŋ /

adjective

1. directed or inclining to one side

2. indirect or oblique

adverb

1. from the side; obliquely

Word History and Origins

Origin of sidelong¹

First recorded in 1515–25; side ¹ + long ¹

Example Sentences

As it happened, the state of the world was addressed, sidelong and directly.

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There are light topical references — a sidelong joke about the names billionaires give their children, for example — but the show happily lives in its world of day-to-day annoyances and victories.

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“I’m turning on you,” Smith replies with a sidelong glance.

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Gracus glanced sidelong at this enormous gnat that continued to buzz in his ear.

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Against the committee-room grandstanding of popular memory, the series thus fashions the entire Eisenhower era from the raw materials of the closet, from subtext, secrets, sidelong glances and confidential tones.

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Related Words

• ambiguous 
• ancillary 
• circuitous 
• implied 
• incidental 
• oblique 
• tortuous