sidelong
/ˈsaɪd.lɑŋ/adjective, adverb
sidelong is spelled S-I-D-E-L-O-N-G: 8 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 17 million words in written English, the 122,704th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, sidelong means “Directed to the side; sideways” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in sidelong?
| Letters | 8: S-I-D-E-L-O-N-G |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 17 million words; the 122,704th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is sidelong?
Sidelong appears about once in every 17 million words in written English, the 122,704th 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 sidelong?
- US /ˈsaɪd.lɑŋ/
- UK /ˈsaɪd.lɒŋ/
Sidelong has 2 syllables (counted from the pronunciation).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-sidelong.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of sidelong
- more sidelong comparative
- most sidelong superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does sidelong mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Directed to the side; sideways.
He cast me a sidelong glance.
- 2
Slanting or sloping; oblique.
- 3
Indirect; suggestive; not straightforward.
She made some sidelong remarks about his manhood.
- 4
Along the side of something.
adverb
- 1
Towards the side; sideways.
- 2
obliquely
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Where does sidelong come from?
1520s, from Middle English sidlyng (early 14th century), from side + -lyng (“(frequentative)”) (modern English -le (“(frequentative)”)). Reanalyzed as side + long.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).