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  

/ ˌvɜːtɪˈkælɪtɪ, 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

The draft plan, which largely applies to new venues, seeks to “reduce the extent of or remove opportunities for vertical drinking.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 18, 2026

The very first thing I saw there was an anime-style vertical video whose characters barely moved their lips and ended the whole thing with a verbatim “To Be Continue .. ” title card.

From Slate ● Aug. 16, 2026

They showed significant deterioration in several measures, including elevator and aileron control, landing accuracy and vertical and lateral deviation on approach.

From BBC ● Aug. 15, 2026

Wisk got its start as a joint venture between Boeing and Google co-founder Larry Page’s Kitty Hawk Corp. and has flown six generations of electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft, or eVTOL.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 10, 2026

Cactus plant pinpricks of heat run over my face in vertical strips.

From "The Last Cuentista" by Donna Barba Higuera

With the addition of new manufacturing facilities in Silicon Valley, the company is well-positioned to meet growing demand for artificial intelligence and enterprise verticals, said Chief Executive Charles Liang.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 5, 2026

Several end markets are improving, though capital investment remains muted in some verticals, Monet said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 5, 2026

“IP is at the center” — that’s short for intellectual property — “and then they can go execute across all the verticals, whether it’s experiential, merchandise, licensing, films, music, all of it.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 30, 2026

Finally, Baird’s Joe Vruwink did an analysis of software names focused on specific verticals.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 29, 2025

Divide each side into four, and raise verticals from each division.

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

Related Words

• perpendicular
• steep