nonright

Nonright is an unusual English term formed by adding the prefix non- to right. It is not widely established in standard dictionaries and is generally encountered only in informal writing or as a concise shorthand. In formal usage, writers typically hyphenate as non-right or instead use a two-word construction such as not right, depending on meaning. The term is ambiguous because “right” can refer to correctness, the political right, or a geometric right angle, so context matters.

In geometry, the conventional description is not a right triangle or a triangle without a right angle. Some texts, especially when brevity is desired, may appear to use “non-right” as a compound adjective to denote a triangle that is not a right triangle, i.e., non-right triangle. However, this usage is less common than simply saying “not a right triangle.” For angles or shapes, most standards prefer explicit phrasing to avoid confusion.

In political or ideological discourse, “non-right” can describe groups or positions not aligned with the political right. This usage is rare and highly context-dependent; more common labels include left, liberal, centrist, or non-right-wing (hyphenated) to indicate an opposition to right-leaning positions.

Orthography and style guidance generally favor explicit phrasing (not right, not a right angle) rather than adopting nonright as a fixed term. When used, hyphenation as non-right is preferred in many contexts to signal that the word modifies a noun.

See also: right, left-wing, center, right angle, triangle.