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
-
(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
-
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
The truck followed a zigzag course through the poppy fields.
From "The House of the Scorpion" by Nancy Farmer
They try to hide under trees and the shadows of buildings, and run in zigzags when drones start chasing them.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2025
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
Every ten feet, red and blue flags jutted up from the Styrofoam snow, and zigzags of black ribbon denoted hidden crevasses.
From Salon ● May 29, 2023
The crowd parts, and this brown-skinned boy with zigzags cut into his hair makes his way toward the Ring.
From "On the Come Up" by Angie Thomas
The three brothers zigzagged across Zambia, navigating a landscape increasingly shaped by people and avoiding obstacles including major cities.
From BBC ● Sep. 14, 2026
From Levin's quiet street, the concrete border wall zigzagged up the ridge overlooking Shlomi.
From Barron's ● Jun. 4, 2026
But instead of moving quickly in a straight line, as instructed, the men moved slowly and zigzagged through the forest to avoid leaving a clear trail.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 12, 2026
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
Instead they zigzagged back and forth, increasing their altitude by small increments every time they changed directions.
From "Holes" by Louis Sachar
Instead, she has followed her ever-shifting instincts over her past few LPs, zigzagging among ’80s rock, folk-pop, dream-pop and R&B with highly mixed results.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 22, 2026
The US labor market has largely stabilized, with steady unemployment despite zigzagging job growth, leaving policymakers mostly focused on inflation.
From Barron's ● Jul. 26, 2026
This is his Pynchoniad, a zigzagging epic of America and the world through our bloodiest, most shameful hundred years.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 30, 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
Round lanterns lit the zigzagging walkway, their glowing circles echoing the full moon above.
From "When the Sea Turned to Silver" by Grace Lin
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.
