zigzag
Americannoun
-
zigzags
plural
-
a line, course, or progression characterized by sharp turns first to one side and then to the other.
-
one of a series of such turns, as in a line or path.
adjective
adverb
verb (used with object)
-
zigzags,
present (3rd person singular)
-
zigzagged,
past participle, past
-
zigzagging
present participle
verb (used without object)
-
zigzags,
present (3rd person singular)
-
zigzagged,
past participle, past
-
zigzagging
present participle
noun
-
a line or course characterized by sharp turns in alternating directions
-
one of the series of such turns
-
something having the form of a zigzag
adjective
-
(usually prenominal) formed in or proceeding in a zigzag
-
(of sewing machine stitches) produced in a zigzag by a swing needle used for joining stretch fabrics, neatening raw edges, etc
adverb
verb
-
to proceed or cause to proceed in a zigzag
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(tr) to form into a zigzag
Usage
What does zigzag mean?
A zigzag is a line of alternating, sharp up-and-down turns that form peaks and valleys kind of resembling the letter Z.[caption id="attachment_172305" align="alignnone" width="300"]
Getty Images. A pattern of zigzags.[/caption]As a noun, zigzag can also refer to a route or path that resembles this kind of pattern, as in The dragonfly moved through the air in a zigzag. Zigzag can also be used as a verb meaning to move back and forth while traveling forward in a way that resembles this pattern, as in The dragonfly zigzagged through the air. As a verb, zigzag is most commonly used in the context of physical movement, but it can be used in situations in which people keep doing different things, such as changing their minds. A much more common term for this is flip-flop. It is also used as an adjective in phrases like zigzag pattern. In sewing, a zigzag stitch is a type of stitch that can be made by a sewing machine, such as to finish the edges of a garment. Some sewing machines use an attachment called a zigzagger to make such stitches. Example: Some animals, like the hare, move in a zigzag pattern when escaping predators, making it harder for them to be caught.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
zigzagsimple
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zigzagssimple
-
have zigzaggedperfect
-
has zigzaggedperfect
-
am zigzaggingprogressive
-
are zigzaggingprogressive
-
is zigzaggingprogressive
-
have been zigzaggingperfect progressive
-
has been zigzaggingperfect progressive
Past
-
zigzaggedsimple
-
had zigzaggedperfect
-
was zigzaggingprogressive
-
were zigzaggingprogressive
-
had been zigzaggingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of zigzag
1705–15; < French; replacing earlier ziczac < French < German zickzack, gradational compound based on Zacke tack 1
Explanation
The word zigzag describes the shape of a line. A line drawn in a zigzag shape makes a lot of short, sharp turns. The letter Z is a zigzag itself, and a thunderbolt is also often represented as a zigzag. The first turn a zigzag line makes is called a zig, and the second is called the zag. Zigzag can also be a verb. If you're describing how you got lost in the desert, you might say, "I meant to go straight, but then I zigged, and then I zagged." Serpentine describes a line that curves, but the curves are rounded (like a serpent), not short and sharp like a zigzag.
Vocabulary lists containing zigzag
Unit 4: Powerful Openings
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Shiloh
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"My Antonia" by Willa Cather: Captivating Verbs
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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.
See Examples For:
The Italian feature is a droll, Coen brothers-style exercise in deadpan absurdity, with a zigzag plot that caroms off a pleasingly demented cast of oddballs.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 16, 2026
The development and adoption of AI may not go straight from point A to point B. It may very well zigzag, just as the internet economy did.
From Barron's ● Dec. 24, 2025
Don’t zigzag from incident to incident or from regret to regret.
From MarketWatch ● Dec. 2, 2025
Police cars formed a zigzag in the driveway.
From Salon ● May 29, 2025
Her journey to the Valentine farm had been fraught—a troupe of hard characters took her on a zigzag route away from her master.
From "The Underground Railroad: A Novel" by Colson Whitehead
Such stylistic zigzags, always present in the rapper’s work but even more prominent here, define “Don’t Be Dumb.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 20, 2026
He zigzags gracefully from the reggae love paean “Manifestación de Amor,” with boricua band Gomba Jahbari, to the bossa tinged “Besos de Invierno.”
From Los Angeles Times ● May 29, 2024
We are hardly the first generation of women to know in our bones that progress comes in zigzags and waves, and occasional backlash.
From Slate ● Sep. 29, 2023
It zigzags from street level down to that same pasture, the jutting gray concrete of each turn as raw as an exposed ridgeline.
From New York Times ● Jul. 10, 2023
The craft were small and flew low, banking back and forth in lazy zigzags, and the noise of the surf had covered the subtle whine of their propellers.
From "Hollow City" by Ransom Riggs
From Levin's quiet street, the concrete border wall zigzagged up the ridge overlooking Shlomi.
From Barron's ● Jun. 4, 2026
He turned into a global superstar on screen, but in reality a career that began at Millwall zigzagged through Plymouth, Wrexham and Scandinavia before injury forced his retirement aged 29.
From BBC ● May 5, 2026
Shares in Beyond Meat zigzagged from under $2 at the end of September to a low of 52 cents on Oct.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 12, 2025
On Thursday afternoon, delivery trucks and cars zigzagged around unidentifiable heaps of twisted metal and fabric left in the street, as trains roared by and a helicopter circled overhead.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 18, 2024
Huge trees were bent by furious blasts of wind, branches broke, thunder volleyed, and crazy shafts of lightning zigzagged in the dark, steamy sky.
From "Abel's Island" by William Steig
Lehmann said the whale was "zigzagging" in the water and could become stranded again.
From Barron's ● Mar. 27, 2026
The zigzagging has amplified industry worries about inconsistent signals from the agency.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 4, 2025
Sandy Yang’s home, whose form is inspired by the area’s zigzagging mountains, is designed to help a couple without children form their own vibrant community.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 8, 2025
After zigzagging hundreds of miles across Europe, the contents of the consignment had been verified five days earlier by customs officers at Schipol Airport in the Netherlands, ready for its road trip to Belgium.
From BBC ● Jun. 10, 2025
Then they began going up, slowly and zigzagging a good deal, for the hills were steep.
From "The Horse and His Boy" by C.S. Lewis
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.
