the.com/zigzag
the polite refusal to take the straight path anywhere, on principle.
means To move or be arranged in a series of sharp alternating turns, forming a line of repeated angular points rather than a straight path.
from From French zigzag, an 18th-century borrowing that came into French from German Zickzack — a playful reduplication built on Zacke, meaning a jagged point or tooth (as on a saw). The doubled zick-zack imitates the very back-and-forth it describes, the vowel flipping from i to a like a path swerving one way, then the other.
- etymology
- From German zickzack, mimicking sharp jagged lines.
- lightning
- Bolts zigzag seeking the path of least resistance.
- escape tactic
- Running zigzag rarely outpaces a charging predator.
- sewing
- Zigzag stitches stretch without snapping under tension.
- snakes
- Many vipers wear a warning zigzag stripe down their backs.
for instance
lightning bolt pattern — natural phenomenon where electrical discharge follows a jagged path through air, typically 1.4 billion volts