adjacent

[ uh-jey-suhnt ]

adjective

1. lying near, close, or contiguous; adjoining; neighboring:

   a motel adjacent to the highway.

   Synonyms: touching

   Antonyms: distant

2. just before, after, or facing:

   a map on an adjacent page.

3. (used in combination)
   1. related or very close to a specified topic, activity, etc.:

      While the comment was not outright racist, it was racist-adjacent.

   2. supporting or being an ally of a group or subculture without being a part of it:

      She describes herself as queer-adjacent.

   3. having the traits or interests of a group or subculture without being a part of it:

      Are they full-on geeks or just nerd-adjacent?

adjacent

/ əˈdʒeɪsənt /

adjective

1. being near or close, esp having a common boundary; adjoining; contiguous
2. maths
   1. (of a pair of vertices in a graph) joined by a common edge
   2. (of a pair of edges in a graph) meeting at a common vertex

noun

1. geometry the side lying between a specified angle and a right angle in a right-angled triangle

Derived Forms

• adˈjacently, adverb
• adˈjacency, noun

Other Words From

• ad·jacent·ly adverb
• nonad·jacent adjective
• nonad·jacent·ly adverb
• subad·jacent adjective
• subad·jacent·ly adverb
• super·ad·jacent adjective
• super·ad·jacent·ly adverb
• unad·jacent adjective
• unad·jacent·ly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of adjacent¹

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Latin adjacent- (stem of adjacēns, present participle of adjacēre “to adjoin”), equivalent to ad- “toward” ( ad- ) + jac- “lie” + -ent- adjective suffix ( -ent )

Word History and Origins

Origin of adjacent¹

C15: from Latin adjacēre to lie next to, from ad- near + jacēre to lie

Synonym Study

See adjoining.

Example Sentences

Additional parking is available at Yosemite Village and Curry Village, with shuttle service to the Yosemite Valley Lodge and adjacent parking.

From Los Angeles Times

She was arrested Aug. 9 after security personnel noticed her and her boyfriend getting into a physical altercation at the theme park, which is adjacent to the Universal CityWalk dining and shopping district.

From Los Angeles Times

And historically, for Black people, that involves making oneself or one’s presence adjacent to whiteness.

From Slate

Estonia and Latvia share land borders with Russia, while Lithuania is adjacent to the Russian enclave Kaliningrad, which also shares a border with Poland, and Moscow's close ally, Belarus.

From BBC

For decades, Orange County was a conservative stronghold, adjacent to its left-leaning neighbor, Los Angeles County.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• adjoining
• bordering
• contiguous
• neighboring