Oblong Meaning
/ˈɒblɒŋ/Definition, CEFR level C1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
Listen pronunciation
Definition
adjHaving a length and width that are different; not square or circular.
adjRoughly rectangular or elliptical.
Sentence Examples
I lost this oblong Japanese brazier in an earthquake.
Phobos has an oblong shape with an average diameter of about 14 miles (22 kilometers).
CEFR Practice Quiz
The ____ table was longer than it was wide, perfect for the narrow room.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The large dining table has an ____ shape, making it perfect for seating many guests.
Word Origin & History
From Middle English oblong, oblonge, borrowed from Latin oblongus.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"The room was quite dark. The oblong window showed the night sky pricked here and there with stars."
— 1967, Barbara Sleigh, Jessamy, Sevenoaks, Kent: Bloomsbury, published 1993, →ISBN, page 19:
"Plant upright spreading hardy, vigorous and productive; berry, oblong, round, medium size, sweet but rather ideipid."
— 1902, A. W. Peart, “Blackberries: Notes by A. W. Peart”, in Annual Report, page 41:
"Of the smaller oblong formats, none is specifically designated for music."
— 1971, Donald William Krummel, Oblong Format in Early Music Books, page 316:
"Mass cycles and motets had never been presented in small oblong format, so far as we can tell."
— 2017, Sean Gallagher, Secular Renaissance Music: Forms and Functions:
"They sat at the tables—I suppose you know how they are arranged, as a sort of hollow oblong, with the auctioneer at one end and the attendant showing the coins up and down in the middle?"
— 1927, Ernest Bramah, Max Carrados Mysteries:
Explore More C1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The ____ table was longer than it was wide, perfect for the narrow room.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The large dining table has an ____ shape, making it perfect for seating many guests.