Zigzag

A zigzag is a pattern made up of small corners at variable angles, though constant within the zigzag, tracing a path between two parallel lines; it can be described as both jagged and fairly regular. A zigzag is a pattern made up of small corners at variable angles, though constant within the zigzag, tracing a path between two parallel lines; it can be described as both jagged and fairly regular. From the point of view of symmetry, a regular zigzag can be generated from a simple motif like a line segment by repeated application of a glide reflection. Although the origin of the word is unclear, its first printed appearances were in French-language books and ephemera of the late 17th century. Lightning and other electrical hazards are often depicted with a zigzag design, with long downward strokes and short backward ones. The trace of a triangle wave or a sawtooth wave is a zigzag. Pinking shears are designed to cut cloth or paper with a zigzag edge, to lessen fraying. A carpenter's folding ruler can be folded to look like a zigzag. Zigzags are a basic decorative pattern used on pottery, and are often seen in the cuts which separate pieces of ravioli pasta. In sewing, a zigzag stitch is a machine stitch in a zigzag pattern.