zig
Americanverb (used without object)
Usage
What does zig mean? Zig is an informal verb that means to move in one of the directions in a zigzag pattern. A zigzag is a line of alternating, sharp up-and-down turns that form peaks and valleys kind of resembling the letter Z. Zigzag can also be used as a verb meaning to move back and forth while traveling forward in a way that resembles this pattern. The word zag can be used to mean the same thing as zig. However, the two terms are typically used together, in which case they mean to move in opposite directions. This is usually used in a somewhat humorous way. Zig and zag are most commonly used in the context of physical movement, but they are sometimes used in situations in which people keep doing different things, such as when changing their minds back and forth. Example: I threw the ball where I said I was going to throw it, but you zigged when you should have zagged!
Etymology
Origin of zig
First recorded in 1785–95; extracted from zigzag
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:
Sometimes you’re smart to zig when everybody else zags.
From Barron's ● May 5, 2026
The episode also demonstrates the series’ refreshing tendency to zig when you expect it to zag.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2024
Mikey Johnston, with a zig and a zag, manages to open up some space on the left.
From BBC ● Apr. 19, 2024
That zag, when the Trojans expected a zig, created a career game for tailback Dillon Johnson and preserved the undefeated season.
From Seattle Times ● Nov. 6, 2023
In one hall, they had to zig and zag to opposite sides and sidle along the lockers to avoid the security cameras.
From "The Smartest Kid in the Universe" by Chris Grabenstein
The energy sector’s monthly returns had only a 74% correlation with the rest of the market, meaning that sometimes it zigged when everything else was zagging — an extraordinarily useful attribute in the real world.
From MarketWatch ● Feb. 20, 2026
It’s as if Streisand’s had heard about the bonkers approach of those other dogs and zigged, sitting patiently as Streisand doled a morsel or two to each.
From New York Times ● Nov. 7, 2023
Running back Antonio Gibson zigged and zagged his way through defenders on a screen pass for a 73-yard touchdown.
From Washington Times ● Sep. 26, 2021
During the time I’ve spent reporting on the trial, my life has zigged and zagged.
From Slate ● Mar. 5, 2019
We started back up walking and Emma zigged and zagged her way up to the new-free girl.
From "Elijah of Buxton" by Christopher Paul Curtis
Rivian is zigging while other car companies are zagging.
From Barron's ● Apr. 30, 2026
“We’re zigging where legacy studios are zagging,” Dan Lin, Netflix’s film chairman, said Wednesday at Netflix’s slate event in Hollywood.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 19, 2026
This is a huge blow to the idea that bitcoin is somehow something different, a supposedly uncorrelated asset that may help diversify your portfolio by sometimes zigging when everything else zags.
From MarketWatch ● Nov. 21, 2025
Jones is known for zigging when others are zagging.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 29, 2025
Now that they were on level ground, zooming through Fry, zigging around frozen people and things, they found their bikes maintained only the narrowest lead over the creature.
From "The Last Last-Day-of-Summer" by Lamar Giles
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.
