horizontal
/ˌhoɹəˈzɑn.təl/adjective, noun
horizontal is spelled H-O-R-I-Z-O-N-T-A-L: 10 letters and 4 syllables. It appears 7.9 times per million words in written English, the 8,266th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, horizontal means “Perpendicular to the vertical; parallel to the plane of the horizon; level, flat” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in horizontal?
| Letters | 10: H-O-R-I-Z-O-N-T-A-L |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 4 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 7.9 times per million words; the 8,266th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is horizontal?
Horizontal appears 7.9 times per million words in written English, the 8,266th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce horizontal?
- UK /ˌhɒɹɪˈzɒn.təl/
- US /ˌhoɹəˈzɑn.təl/
- Canada /ˌhoɹəˈzɒn.təl/
Horizontal has 4 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-horizontal.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of horizontal
- more horizontal comparative
- most horizontal superlative
- horizontals plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does horizontal mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Perpendicular to the vertical; parallel to the plane of the horizon; level, flat.
horizontal lines
- 2
Relating to horizontal markets
- 3
archaicPertaining to the horizon.
- 4
Involving wines of the same vintages but from different wineries.
- 5
Having the two notes sound successively.
- 6
Relating to sexual intercourse.
horizontal tango
- 7
Being or relating to the transmission of organisms between biotic and/or abiotic members of an ecosystem that are not in a parent-progeny relationship.
Infectious agents may spread by horizontal transmission.
noun
- 1
A horizontal component of a structure.
- 2
Horizon.
- 3
A Tasmanian shrub or small tree whose main trunk tends to lean over and grow horizontally, Anodopetalum biglandulosum
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Horizontal in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense parallel to the plane of the horizon:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | horizontal |
| German | horizontal, waagrecht, waagerecht |
| Portuguese | horizontal |
| Spanish | horizontal |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does horizontal come from?
Borrowed from Middle French horizontal, from horizon, horizonte, from Latin horizōn (stem horizont-).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).