diagonally

adverb

di·​ag·​o·​nal·​ly dī-ˈa-gə-nə-lē How to pronounce diagonally (audio)
-ˈag-nə-lē
Synonyms of diagonallynext
: in a diagonal manner

Synonyms of diagonally

Relevance
See All Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus

Examples of diagonally in a Sentence

placed two strips of pimiento diagonally on each deviled egg
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
In van Gogh’s painting, the moon is positioned in the top right corner, diagonally above Venus, which is center left, with other stars positioned left of the moon. — Amarachi Orie, CNN Money, 24 Oct. 2026 Trim the crust from the brioche slices and cut them diagonally into 2 triangles. — Candy Hom, AJC.com, 24 Oct. 2026 During demonstrations, the researchers folded the material diagonally in opposite directions, and its digital counterpart followed the changing geometry. — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 9 Oct. 2026 Jeans were cut on the bias — diagonally across the fabric — to change their fall. — ABC News, 2 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for diagonally

Word History

First Known Use

1541, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of diagonally was in 1541

Browse Nearby Words

diagonalize
diagonally
diagonal matrix
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Diagonally.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/diagonally. Accessed 1 Nov. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of Pyrrhic

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Pwn, Skibidi, Girlboss and Other Words Added to the 2026 Scrabble Dictionary

The Words of the Week - Oct. 30

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
couple-laugh-cafe
Quiz: Foreign Phrases You Should Know Check out your bona fides and avoid any faux pas.
See All