View synonyms for

lateral thinking

[lat-er-uhl thing-king]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

an approach to problem solving that involves nontraditional thought processes such as free association of ideas, creative analogy, pattern recognition, intuition, etc..
This position requires lateral thinking, collaborative skills, and the ability to deal with ambiguity.

lateral thinking

noun

a way of solving problems by rejecting traditional methods and employing unorthodox and apparently illogical means

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Word History and Origins

Origin of lateral thinking¹

Coined in 1967 by Maltese psychologist E. de Bono (1933–2021)

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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

"The four contestants were as competitive as anyone I've tested before, and they demonstrated different ways of lateral thinking, as well as some creative interpretations of my rules," he said.

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This year the public has been challenged to decode the names of UK landmarks, testing skills including codebreaking, maths and lateral thinking.

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This year's puzzle challenges the public to decode the names of UK landmarks, testing skills like codebreaking, maths and lateral thinking.

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If these sorts of solutions to geological problems seem to come from left field, Dr. Petermann and Dr. Fastovsky both point out, that’s because they take a certain amount of lateral thinking to invent.

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The intelligence agency said pupils would need to employ all their skills of lateral thinking, ingenuity and perseverance to be successful.

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lateral system Lateran

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