unilateral

See also: unilatéral

English

Etymology

A modern creation (circa 1802), from New Latin ūnilaterālis (“one-sided”), from Latin ūnus (“one”) + laterālis (“sided, lateral”), equivalent to uni- +‎ lateral.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˌjuːnɪˈlætərəl/
  • (UK) IPA^(key): [ˌjʉː.nɪˈlæt.ə.ɹɫ̩], [ˌjʉː.nɪˈlæt͡ʃ.ɹɫ̩]
  • (US) IPA^(key): [ˌjʉː.nəˈɫæɾ.ɚ.ɻɫ̩]

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ætəɹəl

Adjective

unilateral (comparative more unilateral, superlative most unilateral)

1. Done by one side only.
   • 2010, Roger D. Blair, Jeffrey L. Harrison, “The Antitrust Laws and Monopsonistic Forms of Conduct”, in Monopsony in Law and Economics, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, →ISBN, section 2.4 (A Taxonomy of Monopsony Cases), page 29:

     For purposes of evaluating monopsony cases from the standpoint of economic efficiency, it makes sense to adopt a "purpose"-oriented classification system. After all, all monopsony cases can be reduced to either a unilateral or collusive use of buying power in order to promote the interests of the buyer.

2. (medicine, physiology) Affecting only one side of the body.
3. (business, finance, law) Binding or affecting one party only.

Synonyms

• one-sided

Derived terms

• nonunilateral
• unilateral contract
• unilateralism
• unilateralist
• unilateralistic
• unilaterality
• unilateralize
• unilaterally
• unilateralness

Translations

done by one side only

• Arabic: أُحَادِيّ الجَانِب (ʔuḥādiyy al-jānib)
• Armenian: միակողմանի (hy) (miakoġmani)
• Azerbaijani: birtərəfli
• Belarusian: аднабако́вы (adnabakóvy), аднабо́чны (adnabóčny)
• Bulgarian: едностра́нен (ednostránen)
• Catalan: unilateral (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 單方面 / 单方面 (zh) (dānfāngmiàn), 單邊 / 单边 (zh) (dānbiān), 片面 (zh) (piànmiàn), (one-way) 單向 / 单向 (zh) (dānxiàng)

• Cornish: untu
• Czech: jednostranný (cs)
• Danish: ensidig
• Dutch: eenzijdig (nl)
• Finnish: yksipuolinen (fi)
• French: unilatéral (fr)
• Galician: unilateral (gl)
• Georgian: ცალმხრივი (calmxrivi), ერთმხრივი (ertmxrivi)
• German: einseitig (de)
• Greek: μονομερής (el) (monomerís)
• Ido: unlatera (io)
• Indonesian: unilateral (id)
• Irish: aontaobhach
• Italian: unilaterale (it)
• Kazakh: біржақты (birjaqtı)
• Macedonian: едностран (ednostran)
• Malay: sehala (ms)
• Norwegian: unilateral
• Polish: jednostronny (pl)
• Portuguese: unilateral (pt)
• Romanian: unilateral (ro)
• Russian: односторо́нний (ru) (odnostorónnij)
• Slovak: jednostranný
• Spanish: unilateral (es)
• Swedish: ensidig (sv)
• Telugu: ఏకపక్ష (ēkapakṣa)
• Ukrainian: однобі́чний (odnobíčnyj), односторо́нній (odnostorónnij)
• Welsh: unochrog (cy)

See also

• one-sidedly
• unilateralism
• unilaterally

Catalan

Etymology

From uni- +‎ lateral.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Northern, Balearic, Central) [u.ni.lə.təˈɾal]
• IPA^(key): (Valencia, Northwestern) [u.ni.la.teˈɾal]

• Audio (Barcelona):

  (file)

• Hyphenation: u‧ni‧la‧te‧ral

Adjective

unilateral m or f (masculine and feminine plural unilaterals)

1. unilateral

Derived terms

• unilateralitat
• unilateralment

Further reading

• “unilateral”, in Diccionari de la llengua catalana [Dictionary of the Catalan Language] (in Catalan), second edition, Institute of Catalan Studies [Catalan: Institut d'Estudis Catalans], April 2007
• “unilateral”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2026
• “unilateral” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• Alcover, Antoni Maria; Moll, Francesc de Borja (1963), “unilateral”, in Diccionari català-valencià-balear (in Catalan)

Danish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈunilad̥əˌʁɑˀl/

Adjective

unilateral

1. unilateral

Further reading

• “unilateral” in Den Danske Ordbog

Galician

Etymology

From uni- + lateral.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /u.ni.la.tɛˈɾal/
• Rhymes: -al
• Hyphenation: u‧ni‧la‧te‧ral

Adjective

unilateral m or f (plural unilaterais)

1. unilateral

   Antonym: bilateral

Derived terms

• unilateralmente

Further reading

• “unilateral”, in Dicionario da Real Academia Galega (in Galician), A Coruña: Royal Galician Academy, 2012–2026
• “unilateral”, in Dicionário Estraviz de galego (in Galician), 2014–2026

German

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˌunilatəˈʁaːl/

• Audio (Germany (Berlin)):

  (file)

Adjective

unilateral (strong nominative masculine singular unilateraler, not comparable)

1. unilateral

Declension

Positive forms of unilateral (uncomparable)

number & gender		singular			plural
		masculine	feminine	neuter
predicative		er ist unilateral	sie ist unilateral	es ist unilateral	sie sind unilateral
strong declension (without article)	nominative	unilateraler	unilaterale	unilaterales	unilaterale
	genitive	unilateralen	unilateraler	unilateralen	unilateraler
	dative	unilateralem	unilateraler	unilateralem	unilateralen
	accusative	unilateralen	unilaterale	unilaterales	unilaterale
weak declension (with definite article)	nominative	der unilaterale	die unilaterale	das unilaterale	die unilateralen
	genitive	des unilateralen	der unilateralen	des unilateralen	der unilateralen
	dative	dem unilateralen	der unilateralen	dem unilateralen	den unilateralen
	accusative	den unilateralen	die unilaterale	das unilaterale	die unilateralen
mixed declension (with indefinite article)	nominative	ein unilateraler	eine unilaterale	ein unilaterales	(keine) unilateralen
	genitive	eines unilateralen	einer unilateralen	eines unilateralen	(keiner) unilateralen
	dative	einem unilateralen	einer unilateralen	einem unilateralen	(keinen) unilateralen
	accusative	einen unilateralen	eine unilaterale	ein unilaterales	(keine) unilateralen

Derived terms

• Unilateralismus

Related terms

• bilateral
• multilateral

Further reading

• “unilateral”, in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache‎^[1] (in German)
• “unilateral” in Uni Leipzig: Wortschatz-Lexikon

Indonesian

Etymology

Internationalism, lateral +‎ uni-, from New Latin ūnilaterālis (“one-sided”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /u.ni.la.tə.ˈral/
• Rhymes: -ral
• Hyphenation: u‧ni‧la‧tê‧ral

Adjective

unilatêral (comparative lebih unilateral, superlative paling unilateral)

1. unilateral

   Synonym: sehala (Standard Malay)

Related terms

• unilateralisme

Further reading

• “unilateral”, in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia [Great Dictionary of the Indonesian Language] (in Indonesian), Jakarta: Agency for Language Development and Cultivation – Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, 2016

Piedmontese

Alternative forms

• ünilateral

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ynilateˈral/

Adjective

unilateral

1. unilateral

Portuguese

Etymology

Etymology tree

Portuguese uni-

Latin latus

Proto-Indo-European *h₂el-

Proto-Indo-European *-is

Proto-Indo-European *h₂élisder.?

Proto-Italic *-ālis

Latin -ālis

Latin laterālislbor.

Portuguese lateral

Portuguese unilateral

From uni- + lateral.

Pronunciation

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /u.ni.la.teˈɾaw/ [u.ni.la.teˈɾaʊ̯]

 

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /u.ni.lɐ.tɨˈɾal/ [u.ni.lɐ.tɨˈɾaɫ]

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /u.ni.lɐ.tɨˈɾal/ [u.ni.lɐ.tɨˈɾaɫ]
  • (Southern Portugal) IPA^(key): /u.ni.lɐ.tɨˈɾa.li/

• Rhymes: (Portugal) -al, (Brazil) -aw
• Hyphenation: u‧ni‧la‧te‧ral

Adjective

unilateral m or f (plural unilaterais)

1. unilateral (affecting only one side)
2. one-sided; partial (biased in favour of one faction)

   Synonym: parcial

3. (of a contract or interaction) unilateral (binding or affecting one party only)

Derived terms

• unilateralidade
• unilateralmente

Further reading

• “unilateral”, in Dicionário Aulete Digital (in Portuguese), Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon Editora Digital, 2008–2026
• “unilateral” in Dicionário Aberto based on Novo Diccionário da Língua Portuguesa de Cândido de Figueiredo, 1913
• “unilateral”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2026

Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from French unilatéral. By surface analysis, uni- +‎ lateral.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˌu.ni.la.teˈral/

Adjective

unilateral m or n (feminine singular unilaterală, masculine plural unilaterali, feminine/neuter plural unilaterale)

1. unilateral
2. Binding or affecting one party only.

Declension

Declension of unilateral

		singular			plural
		masculine	neuter	feminine	masculine	neuter	feminine
nominative- accusative	indefinite	unilateral		unilaterală	unilaterali	unilaterale
	definite	unilateralul		unilaterala	unilateralii	unilateralele
genitive- dative	indefinite	unilateral		unilaterale	unilaterali	unilaterale
	definite	unilateralului		unilateralei	unilateralilor	unilateralelor

Related terms

• unilateralitate

Spanish

Etymology

From uni- + lateral.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /unilateˈɾal/ [u.ni.la.t̪eˈɾal]
• Rhymes: -al
• Syllabification: u‧ni‧la‧te‧ral

Adjective

unilateral m or f (masculine and feminine plural unilaterales)

1. unilateral

Derived terms

• unilateralidad
• unilateralmente

Further reading

• “unilateral”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8.1, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 15 December 2025

Swedish

Adjective

unilateral (not comparable)

1. unilateral

Further reading

• “unilateral”, in Svenska Akademiens ordlista [Wordlist of the Swedish Academy] (in Swedish)