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Because I'm thinking of a certain spatial orientation, consider an example at hand. You are sitting at your keyboard which is flat on your desk. The keys ASDFJKL are arranged laterally, whereas the keys MKI8 are arranged [word goes here].

"Longitudinally" in this context becomes confusing, because it appears to mean the same direction as "laterally". "Laterally" seems most apt as I've used it, because it's used in regards to the orientation of the object (side to side). "Longitudinally" appears apt only because of the aspect ratio of the object (along the long dimension).

Anatomical terms and simple antonyms such as "medially" seem to suggest a location more so than a direction. Other suggested antonyms like "perpendicularly" or "crosswise" are ambiguous.

DGM
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    MKI8 are arranged vertically. – Decapitated Soul Mar 19 '20 at 18:21
  • Longitude is the series of 24 vertical segments of time zones. – Yosef Baskin Mar 19 '20 at 18:22
  • You could also say 'the keys MKI8 are perpendicular to ASDFGH'. – Decapitated Soul Mar 19 '20 at 18:23
  • The emphasis on directionality with respect to the body doesn't make much sense for your example. If you turn the keyboard 90 degrees, it doesn't change the fact that ASDF are horizontal and MKI8 are vertical. These directions are defined with respect to the common reference point (in front of the keyboard), not with respect to where you happen to be standing. Your arms' positions, on the other hand, are typically with respect to your body, and extend radially, in a line toward/away from the body, – Nuclear Hoagie Mar 19 '20 at 18:24
  • @NuclearWang: This is in the context of ergonomics, It is relevant to discuss the orientation of object features with respect to the body and motions thereof. Using vertically conflicts with other usage describing objects arranged along the axis on which gravity accelerates things. It might work, but I'd like to avoid the confusion. I think radially might be the best yet, though. – DGM Mar 19 '20 at 19:23
  • Hm, in that case the qwertyuiop would be circumferential and some ergonomic keyboards do have that kind of arrangement (for each hand). Most, though, do not. – Weather Vane Mar 19 '20 at 19:35
  • Developing the answer @Decapitated Soul gives, 'horizontal' & 'vertical' are used (1) in relation to the horizon and the up-down axis(/axes) when surveying a vista, (2) in the obviously related senses when looking at a 'properly displayed' photo / painting of such scenes, (3) in those senses no matter how the photo/picture is displayed, eg on a desk, (4) in the corresponding senses when looking at a piece of A4 paper say placed on a desk. The broadening to arrays displayed similarly is a small further step. But standard keyboards don't quite have such an array. 'Quasi-vertical'? – Edwin Ashworth Mar 19 '20 at 19:40
  • @WeatherVane: I do get that radially connotes some sort of rotational symmetry, but I think it could also be taken more loosely to mean "away from a reference point*. It's not perfect. – DGM Mar 19 '20 at 20:21
  • I think Edwin's comment about photographs is pertinent. Even when the picture is laid flat, horizontal and vertical directions make sense. If you are writing documentation the reader should not struggle with unusual terms. – Weather Vane Mar 19 '20 at 20:39
  • It's not technical documentation, though as I mentioned in another comment, I should probably simply take the time to make a formal remark to describe a coordinate space or otherwise clarify the terms that are going to be used throughout the following discussion. I can have more flexibility in word choice that way, though it may momentarily feel awkward to break the flow like that. – DGM Mar 20 '20 at 05:14

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The medical term for front-to-back is sagittal.

Sagittal: A vertical plane passing through the standing body from front to back. The mid-sagittal, or median plane, splits the body into left and right halves.

— WebMD

But, however apt the word sagittally, "front-to-back" is (as opposed to laterally, "side-to-side"), it's not likely to be understood outside medical circles.

Community
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Andrew Leach
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  • Also in medical terms "laterally" is on the side or sides rather than side-to-side. – Mike Mar 19 '20 at 20:32
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    @Mike True; a lateral plane runs from side to side (and separates front from back). Feel free to make that remark clearer -- I'm not sure I can. – Andrew Leach Mar 19 '20 at 21:31
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This is a bit of a stretch but in 3D co-ordinate math the horizontal (width axis) is called abscissa, the vertical (height axis) is called ordinate and the depth axis is called the applicate. So you could use the term "applicaly" or "applically"; you'd be inventing a word but it would be based in good etymology.

You'd have to explain it the first time you use it so if you're only using it once that doesn't help but if you're using it repeatedly that might make things flow better.

X, Y, Z — horizontal, vertical and ...? has more about the axis.

Mike
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    I'm beginning to think that it might just be less ambiguous to briefly describe a coordinate system (e.g. x,y,z) with the workspace and then refer to it as needed. – DGM Mar 19 '20 at 20:30