sideways
adverb · adjective
Simple meaning
To, toward or at one side.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
sydwayzSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈsaɪdweɪz
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
adverb
To, toward or at one side
“The car slipped sideways into the ditch.”
With one side forward or to the front
“Turned sideways to show the profile.”
From the side; obliquely
Askance; sidelong.
informal
Neither upward nor downward.
chiefly uscolloquial
Not as planned; towards a worse outcome.
adjective
Moving or directed toward one side.
informal
Neither moving upward nor moving downward.
usually with "with"informal
In conflict (with); not compatible (with).
informal
Positioned sideways (with a side to the front).
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- C1 · Advanced (estimated)
- Frequency
- Uncommon
- Typical Use
- Neutral / general English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: To, toward or at one side
Used this way, sideways is a common word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
“The car slipped sideways into the ditch.”
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Common
- Connotation
- No strong connotation
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
How It’s Used
The word’s distinct uses, one example each.
Sideadverb
“Turned sideways to show the profile.”
Towardadverb
“The car slipped sideways into the ditch.”
More ways to use sideways
- “The car slipped sideways into the ditch.”adverb
- “Turned sideways to show the profile.”adverb
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Related Words
Connected to the same idea, not synonyms.
More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin
Synonyms
Sense: moving or directed toward one side
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.