cattycorner
cattycorner Lexical Profile
• adjective
North American Situated diagonally opposite something, especially across an intersection of two streets or at opposite corners of a room.
"The small bakery is cattycorner from the town library."
• adverb
North American In a diagonal direction or position; diagonally across from a corner.
"They positioned the armchair cattycorner to the fireplace to open up the living room."
Word Nuance & Usage
Primarily used in North American English, this word has numerous regional variants—including 'catercorner', 'kitty-corner', and 'catty-cornered'—with 'cattycorner' most common in the American South and Midland regions.
Word Origin & Etymology
Altered by folk etymology (associating the word with 'cat') from 'catercorner', which derives from Middle English 'catre' (from Old French 'quatre', meaning 'four') combined with 'corner', originally meaning 'four-cornered' or positioned diagonally from corner to corner.
Usage Trend
Historical frequency of usage in published text.