sideways

Etymology

It is formed from English side + -ways,^[2][3][4][5] which Etymonline describes as side and way with the adverbial genitive ending.^[6] The OED compares the earlier sideway and sidewise;^[2] an older adverb was sideward or sidewards, from the early 15th century.^[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

Towards the side, in a sideward direction: 1572, in a translation of Münster.^[2] Etymonline instead dates the sense "from one side" to the 1570s and "toward one side" to the 1610s.^[6]

Semantic evolution

From the side or in profile is recorded from 1575, and with the side facing forward from 1598.^[2][6] From 1645, in Milton, it described a head tilted to one side.^[2] To look sideways at someone meant to cast amorous glances by 1844 and scornful ones by 1860.^[6] The 20th century added figurative senses: in finance, of prices that neither rise nor fall (1905), in organizations, of a move to another post at the same level (1938), and of an unconventional angle on a subject (1969).^[2] Slang uses include to go sideways, to commit a crime (1899), and later to go wrong.^[7] In dialect it also meant aside, or askance.^[8]

Timeline

• 1572 – towards the side.^[2]
• 1575 – from the side, in profile.^[2]
• 1598 – with the side facing forward.^[2]
• 1684 – adjective, directed towards or from the side.^[2]
• 1905 – of prices, steady, neither rising nor falling.^[2]
• 1938 – at the same level within an organization.^[2]
• 1969 – adjective, unconventional, offbeat.^[2]

Meanings

Adverb

1. Towards or to one side: The crab scuttled sideways across the sand.^[9][5][2]
2. With one side, rather than the front, facing forward: Turn the sofa sideways to get it through the door.^[9][5][2]
3. From the side; obliquely: He glanced sideways at the clock.^[9][5][2]
4. To a post at the same level, in a company or organization.^[2]
5. Of prices, without rising or falling much.^[2]

Adjective

1. Moving or directed to or from one side: a sideways look.^[9][5][2]
2. Taking an unusual or unconventional view of a subject.^[2]

Related words

• sideward
• sidewise
• sideway
• side
• way

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
4. ^ Klein, Ernest. A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language. 2 vols. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1966–1967.
5. ^ a b c d e Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
6. ^ a b c d e Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
7. ^ Green, Jonathon (2010), Green's Dictionary of Slang, London: Chambers; digital ed. 2016–, https://greensdictofslang.com
8. ^ Wright, Joseph, ed. (1898–1905), The English Dialect Dictionary, 6 vols., Oxford: Henry Frowde; via EDD Online 4.0, University of Innsbruck (CC BY 4.0)
9. ^ a b c d Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins