two-dimensional

American  

[too-di-men-shuh-nl, -dahy-] / ˈtu dɪˈmɛn ʃə nl, -daɪ- /

adjective

1. having the dimensions of height and width only.

   a two-dimensional surface.

2. (of a work of art) having its elements organized in terms of a flat surface, especially emphasizing the vertical and horizontal character of the picture plane.

   the two-dimensional structure of a painting.

3. (in a literary work) shallow, unconvincing, or superficial in execution.

   a novel having two-dimensional characters.

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two-dimensional British  

adjective

1. of, having, or relating to two dimensions, usually describable in terms of length and breadth or length and height

2. lying on a plane; having an area but not enclosing any volume

3. lacking in depth, as characters in a literary work

4. (of painting or drawing) lacking the characteristics of form or depth

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Other Word Forms

• two-dimensionality noun
• two-dimensionally adverb

Etymology

Origin of two-dimensional

First recorded in 1895–1900

Example Sentences

To investigate this possibility, the researchers designed a tabletop experiment with a two-dimensional array of freely rotating magnetic elements positioned above a second magnetic layer.

From Science Daily

The team is already applying the microscope to other two-dimensional materials to explore additional terahertz-scale effects.

From Science Daily

"Because of their stability and extremely small size, these vortices offer a new route to controlling magnetism at the nanoscale and provide insight into universal topological physics in two-dimensional systems."

From Science Daily

She is enrolled in ART 120, a two-dimensional design course worth four college credits.

From Los Angeles Times

Using two-dimensional gas chromatography with high-resolution mass spectrometry, they detected more than 900 chemical signatures, representing both known and previously unidentified compounds.

From Science Daily