Dictionary
col•lat•er•al
Pronunciation: (ku-lat'ur-ul), [key]—
n.
1. security pledged for the payment of a loan:
He gave the bank some stocks and bonds as collateral for the money he borrowed.
2. Anat.
a. a subordinate or accessory part.
b. a side branch, as of a blood vessel or nerve.
c. See
collateral circulation.
3. a relative descended from the same stock, but in a different line.
—
adj.
1. accompanying; auxiliary:
He received a scholarship and collateral aid.
2. additional; confirming:
collateral evidence; collateral security.
3. secured by collateral:
a collateral loan.
4. aside from the main subject, course, etc.; secondary:
These accomplishments are merely collateral to his primary goal.
5. descended from the same stock, but in a different line; not lineal:
A cousin is a collateral relative.
6. pertaining to those so descended.
7. situated at the side:
a collateral wing of a house.
8. situated or running side by side; parallel:
collateral ridges of mountains.
9. Bot.standing side by side.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.
