Zigzag

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Dr. Goodword
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Zigzag

Postby Dr. Goodword » Sat Feb 18, 2023 8:16 pm

• zigzag •


Pronunciation: zig-zæg • Hear it!

Part of Speech: Noun, Verb

Meaning: A line or course that proceeds by sharp turns in alternating opposite directions.

Notes: Today's Good Word is another instance of a rhyming compound, a compound with a similar word attached to it for various reasons. It is accompanied by an adjective, zigzaggy, and a less often used noun, zigzaggery. It can be used equally as a noun or a verb, as "He zigzagged his way down the field toward the goal line."

Image

In Play: The zigzag is a common figure that we find in many places: "The writing spider, as the graphic graphically depicts, weaves a zigzag into her web." Let's not forget that this word works just as well as a verb: "Juan Trippe caught the pass, but as he zigzagged down the field, he zigged when he should have zagged and stumbled over his own feet."

Word History: English acquired this word from French as usual. The French spelling of German Zickzack "zigzag, fanfold" would be zic-zac, so it is a safe assumption that French borrowed it from German, though there is a problem with dates. Now German Zacke means "point; tooth; serration", from Middle High German Zacke "point, nail". The choice of this word was probably suggested by the shape of the letter Z. The ancestor of Old High German Zacke came down to English as tack. The Zick was another instance of a rhyming compound, as mentioned above, apparently added to indicate the repetition of a jagged line. (We will not zigzag around an expression of our gratitude to Eric Berntson for suggesting today's Good Word.)
• The Good Dr. Goodword

amandel
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Joined: Fri Apr 12, 2013 9:59 am

Re: Zigzag

Postby amandel » Thu Feb 23, 2023 2:37 pm

There is a more disciplined form of zigzag that goes by the name boustrophedonic. Boustrophredon has already been a Good Word, but the item does not connect to zigzag.

bbeeton
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Re: Zigzag

Postby bbeeton » Fri Feb 24, 2023 1:19 pm

A braided fiber zigzag edging is "rickrack", and this relation is recognized in the Wikipedia entry for rickrack.

A jumble of stones thrown on a riverbank to prevent erosion is called "riprap". It is undeniably jagged (and unsafe to walk on), but the connection I make here is that I've often heard it called "rickrack", probably by city folk who haven't grown up near water.


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