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straightedge

American  
[streyt-ej] / ˈstreɪtˌɛdʒ /

noun

  1. a bar or strip of wood, plastic, or metal having at least one long edge of sufficiently reliable straightness for use in drawing or testing straight lines, plane surfaces, etc.

straightedge British  
/ ˈstreɪtˌɛdʒ /

noun

  1. a stiff strip of wood or metal that has one edge straight and true and is used for ruling and testing straight lines

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

Etymology

Origin of straightedge

First recorded in 1805–15; straight + edge

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.

Straightedge illustrates the curvature of the earth, and dispels our visual assumption that any stretch of the planet is as flat as it looks.

From The Guardian • Sep. 1, 2015

At one end of Straightedge, the lights are right next to each other.

From The Guardian • Sep. 1, 2015

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.