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# bilateral

adjective (bilateral)

«bilateral» in the English dictionary: everyday — its meanings, how the lessons use it, and examples, each with its tree on Mova.

## Everyday

1. (politics, formal) Involving two sides, groups or countries, as in a bilateral agreement. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/B/bilateral/#m1)
2. (science, medicine) Having to do with both sides of the body, as in bilateral symmetry. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/B/bilateral/#m2)

### In the lessons

In politics and news, a bilateral treaty or meeting is between two countries. In science, animals like humans and butterflies have bilateral symmetry: the left and right halves are mirror images. In maths, that is a line of symmetry down the middle.

### Examples

- The two countries signed a bilateral trade deal. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/B/bilateral/#x1)
- Humans have bilateral symmetry. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/B/bilateral/#x2)
- A butterfly's wings show bilateral symmetry. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/B/bilateral/#x3)
- The prime ministers held bilateral talks. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/B/bilateral/#x4)
- The doctor said the infection was bilateral, in both ears. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/B/bilateral/#x5)
- A starfish does not have bilateral symmetry; it has five-way symmetry. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/B/bilateral/#x6)

### Note

«Bi-» means two; «lateral» means side. Compare: unilateral (one side), multilateral (many sides). Formal word.

## On Mova

- [Trees and pragmatics of «bilateral» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/B/bilateral/): every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
- [«bilateral» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/bilateral.html) on Mova free.