quadrilateral

[ kwod-ruh-lat-er-uhl ]

adjective

1. having four sides.

noun

1. a plane figure having four sides and four angles.
2. something of this form.
3. Geometry.
   1. a figure formed by four straight lines that have six points of intersection.
   2. a polygon with four sides.
4. the space enclosed between and defended by four fortresses.

quadrilateral

/ ˌkwɒdrɪˈlætərəl /

adjective

1. having or formed by four sides

noun

1. Also calledtetragon a polygon having four sides. A complete quadrilateral consists of four lines and their six points of intersection

quadrilateral

/ kwŏd′rə-lăt′ər-əl /

1. A polygon that has four sides, such as a rectangle or rhombus.

Other Words From

• quadri·later·al·ly adverb
• quadri·later·al·ness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of quadrilateral¹

First recorded in 1640–50; from Latin quadrilater(us) “four-sided” + -al ¹; equivalent to quadri- + lateral

Example Sentences

The on-chip quadrilateral MZI network is potentially useful for applications involving optical neural networks, which are created from networks of interconnected nodes.

From Science Daily

Oh, and I do have one final question: Doesn’t the Christian quadrilateral protect us from the false dichotomies you imply?

From Washington Times

China's East China Sea exercises coincide with a quadrilateral naval exercise in the Philippine Sea that started on Friday involving the United States, Japan, Canada and France.

From Reuters

Days before the quadrilateral exercise, the coast guards of the Philippines, United States and Japan held their first trilateral exercise off the coast of a western Philippine province.

From Reuters

What we call a ring in boxing is actually a quadrilateral, a shape with corners.

From New York Times