Meanings
plural boustrophedons · alternative bustrophedon
- countableuncountableepigraphyText written such that its direction alternates on each line, resulting in a continuous stream of characters spanning multiple lines; frequently also involving the corresponding alternation of letter directionality using mirrored letters, indicating the direction of the text at any given point.
(Venetic apparently had both kinds of boustrophedon, either flipping the face of the characters when switching direction or else inverting them (Lejeune, 1974, pages 180-181).)
2000, Richard Sproat, A Computational Theory of Writing Systems, page 612 more examples
The number of Attic boustrophedon texts is fairly small; most of those just cited have been brought down by the experts to a date close to 550 B.C., a date to which several texts of more than one line inscribed left to right may also be assigned (cf. pp.56—57 infra), besides the four-line retrograde sep. mon. of Pediarchus cited in the previous section (cf. p.52 supra). Stone texts only really become numerous in Attica about 550, and by this time it is clear that left-to-right writing is just as common as boustrophedon, and may have been so even earlier.[…]After 540 boustrophedon was certainly unusual.
1980, Leslie Threatte, The Grammar of Attic Inscriptions: Phonology, page 55He draws a sharp distinction between true boustrophedon, which has the tops of the runes pointed in the same direction, but with a change in the direction of writing with each line, and false boustrophedon, which changes from upright to inverted runes with each line, but the lines themselves are each written in the same direction.
2002, Elmer H. Antonsen, Runes and Germanic Linguistics, page 132
alternative bustrophedon
- not comparableuncommonepigraphySynonym of boustrophedonic (“written as a boustrophedon”).
Synonyms: boustrophedonic
alternative bustrophedon
- not comparablerareepigraphySynonym of boustrophedonically (“as a boustrophedon or in a boustrophedonic manner”).
Synonyms: boustrophedonically
Synonyms & antonyms
adjectiveSynonym of boustrophedonic (“written as a boustrophedon”).
adverbSynonym of boustrophedonically (“as a boustrophedon or in a boustrophedonic manner”).
Origin
- Ancient Greekβουστροφηδόν
- Englishboustrophedon
PIE word *gʷṓws Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *gʷṓws Proto-Hellenic *gʷous Ancient Greek βοῦς (boûs) Proto-Indo-European *stregʷʰ-der.? Ancient Greek στρέφω (stréphō) Proto-Indo-European *-h₂ Proto-Indo-European *-éh₂ Proto-Hellenic *-ā́ Ancient Greek -ᾱ (-ā) Ancient Greek -η (-ē) Ancient Greek στροφή (strophḗ) Ancient Greek -ηδόν (-ēdón) Ancient Greek βουστροφηδόν (boustrophēdón)lbor. English boustrophedon Learned borrowing from Ancient Greek βουστροφηδόν (boustrophēdón, adverb, literally “turning like an ox”), from βοῦς (boûs, “ox”) + στροφή (strophḗ, “turning”) + -ηδόν (-ēdón, adverbial suffix), in reference to the back-and-forth course traced by boustrophedon text resembling the path taken by an ox ploughing a field.
More words from Ancient Greek
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Arabic بُطْرُفَة
- بُطْرُفَة (buṭrufa)text written such that its direction alternates on each line
Catalan bustrofèdon
- bustrofèdontext written such that its direction alternates on each line
Esperanto plugoskribado, tienreena skribo
- plugoskribadotext written such that its direction alternates on each line
- tienreena skribotext written such that its direction alternates on each line
- bustrofedonotext written such that its direction alternates on each line
French boustrophédon
- boustrophédontext written such that its direction alternates on each line
German Bustrophedon, Boustrophedon
- Bustrophedontext written such that its direction alternates on each line
- Boustrophedontext written such that its direction alternates on each line
Hindi सर्पलेखन
- सर्पलेखन (sarpalekhan)text written such that its direction alternates on each line
Japanese 牛耕式
- 牛耕式 (gyūkōshiki)text written such that its direction alternates on each line
Polish bustrofedon
- bustrofedontext written such that its direction alternates on each line
Portuguese bustrofédon
- bustrofédontext written such that its direction alternates on each line
Romanian bustrofedon
- bustrofedontext written such that its direction alternates on each line
Russian бустрофедо́н
- бустрофедо́н (bustrofedón)text written such that its direction alternates on each line
Spanish bustrófedon, bustrofedon
- bustrófedontext written such that its direction alternates on each line
- bustrofedontext written such that its direction alternates on each line
- bustrofedóntext written such that its direction alternates on each line
Swedish bustrofedon, plogskrift
- bustrofedontext written such that its direction alternates on each line
- plogskrifttext written such that its direction alternates on each line
- oxplöjarskrifttext written such that its direction alternates on each line
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with boustrophedon
Cite this entry
boustrophedon. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/boustrophedon
“boustrophedon.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/boustrophedon. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “boustrophedon,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/boustrophedon.
Source: boustrophedon on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.