vertical

American  

[vur-ti-kuhl] / ˈvɜr tɪ kəl /

adjective

1. being in a position or direction perpendicular to the plane of the horizon; upright; plumb.

   Antonyms:

   horizontal

2. of, relating to, or situated at the vertex.

3. of or relating to the cranial vertex.

4. Botany.

   1. (of a leaf ) having the blade in a perpendicular plane, so that neither of the surfaces can be called upper or lower.

   2. being in the same direction as the axis; lengthwise.

5. of, constituting, or resulting in vertical combination.

6. of or relating to a product or service from initial planning to sale.

7. of, relating to, or noting a stratified society, nation, etc.

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noun

• verticals
  plural

1. something vertical, as a line or plane.

2. a vertical or upright position.

3. a vertical structural member in a truss.

vertical British  

/ ˈvɜːtɪkəl /

adjective

1. at right angles to the horizon; perpendicular; upright Compare horizontal

   a vertical wall

2. extending in a perpendicular direction

3. at or in the vertex or zenith; directly overhead

4. economics of or relating to associated or consecutive, though not identical, stages of industrial activity

   vertical integration

   vertical amalgamation

5. of or relating to the vertex

6. anatomy of, relating to, or situated at the top of the head (vertex)

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noun

1. a vertical plane, position, or line

2. a vertical post, pillar, or other structural member

Synonym Usage

See upright.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonverticality
  noun
• nonverticalness
  noun
• subverticalness
  noun
• verticalism
  noun
• verticality
  noun
• verticalness
  noun
• nonvertical
  adjective
• subvertical
  adjective
• unvertical
  adjective
• nonvertically
  adverb
• subvertically
  adverb
• unvertically
  adverb
• vertically
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• verticals
  plural

Etymology

Origin of vertical

First recorded in 1550–60; from Latin verticālis, equivalent to vertic- (stem of vertex ) vertex + -ālis -al ¹

Explanation

Vertical describes something that rises straight up from a horizontal line or plane. A telephone pole or a tree can usually be described as vertical in relation to the ground. The walls of your house — unless there's some terrible problem — are vertical. They rise straight up from the foundation, at a ninety degree angle. When you're standing up, you're vertical, as opposed to when you lie down in a horizontal position on the couch. The terms vertical and horizontal often describe directions: a vertical line goes up and down, and a horizontal line goes across. You can remember which direction is vertical by the letter, "v," which points down.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

vertical verticals

Pilots have compared landing on the short runway, with either side plunging straight down off the side of a vertical cliff, to landing on an aircraft carrier.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 3, 2026

And even companies known for vertical integration, like Tesla, are sourcing their components from outside the U.S.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 2, 2026

He remains convinced that his aggressive style of play and so-called vertical football will "work anywhere", even if this team is clearly still a work in progress at such an early stage of his reign.

From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026

Mazzini and Nathan Shunk, a third-year Ph.D. student, recently published a study defining "vertical marine heatwaves" and developing a classification system for them in the Bay.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 30, 2026

Gradually, it became obvious that Gorringe is building some kind of device that will be attached to the obelisk and swivel it from the vertical to a horizontal position.

From "The (Mostly) True Story of Cleopatra's Needle" by Dan Gutman

We’d give them new blood, new direction, and they’d give us cash, prestige, verticals.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2026

The company has pivoted its strategy to focus on high-value verticals within refurbished goods.

From MarketWatch ● May 4, 2026

In addition to concern around a downside revision risk to earnings growth, Hims is grappling with “significant competition in its core verticals where growth has slowed dramatically over the past few years,” the analyst noted.

From Barron's ● Mar. 10, 2026

“The group is closely monitoring the situation and will leverage its diverse network and cargo verticals as market conditions evolve,” it said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 24, 2026

From e and f raise verticals eM and fN, making them equal to perpendicular G, and draw line MN, which will be the same length as base, or 764 feet.

From The Theory and Practice of Perspective by G. A. (George Adolphus) Storey

Related Words

• perpendicular
• steep