What Is the Meaning of Caddy Corner?

Catty-corner is also acceptable.

Caddy-corner means diagonally opposite. If your position is at the top left corner of a square, the bottom right corner is caddy-corner to you. Caddy corner, kitty corner, catty corner and cater corner are also used in various regions.

Phrase Etymology

The phrase caddy-corner consists of an English perversion of the French word meaning four (quatre) affixed to the English "corner." It refers to the four corners of a square, the simplest device for explaining the spacial relationship the phrase refers to.

Example

Real world examples of positions caddy-corner to one another can be found on any chessboard. All white squares are caddy-corner to one another, and all black squares are caddy-corner to one another. Another simple way to remember is a map; Colorado is caddy-corner to Arizona.

Antonyms

One antonym of the phrase caddy-corner is parallel, meaning equidistant and not intersecting. Depending on its use, the term perpendicular, meaning forming an adjacent congruent angle, may also be an antonym.

References

• Washington State University: Caddy-Corner