curve
a continuously bending line, without angles.
the act or extent of curving.
any curved outline, form, thing, or part.
a curved section of a road, path, hallway, etc.
Railroads. a curved section of track: in the U.S. the curve is often expressed as the central angle, measured in degrees, of a curved section of track subtended by a chord 100 feet (30 meters) long (degree of curve ).
Baseball.
the path followed by a ball pitched as a curveball: The curve on that ball was nasty!
a graphic representation of the variations effected in something by the influence of changing conditions; graph.
Mathematics. a collection of points whose coordinates are continuous functions of a single independent variable.
Education. a grading system based on the scale of performance, so that those performing better relative to others in the group, regardless of their actual knowledge of the subject, receive high grades: The new English professor grades on a curve.: Compare absolute (def. 10).
a curved guide used in drafting.
to bend in a curve; cause to take the course of a curve.
to grade on a curve.
to bend in a curve; take the course of a curve.
Baseball. to pitch a curveball: After two forkballs, Stewart curved to Hernandez for a called strike.
having the shape of a curve; curved.
Idioms about curve
ahead of / behind the curve, at the forefront of (or lagging behind) recent developments, trends, etc.
flatten the curve. See entry at flatten the curve.
throw (someone) a curve,
to take (someone) by surprise, especially in a negative way.
to mislead or deceive.
Origin of curve
1Other words from curve
- curv·ed·ly [kur-vid-lee], /ˈkɜr vɪd li/, adverb
- curv·ed·ness, noun
- curve·less, adjective
- un·curved, adjective
- un·curv·ing, adjective
- un·der·curve, noun
- un·der·curve, verb (used without object), un·der·curved, un·der·curv·ing.
- well-curved, adjective
Words Nearby curve
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use curve in a sentence
Given where he falls on aging curves, his prospect pedigree and the success of sons of former major leaguers,16 there are many indicators that suggest Tatís will have staying power as one of the game’s top players.
Fernando Tatís Jr. Was Already Mashing. Then He Started Hitting The Ball Harder. | Travis Sawchik | August 21, 2020 | FiveThirtyEightThere are 11 rows of seats curving around the balcony where you like to sit.
Ever since Albert Einstein’s general theory of relativity recast gravity as curves in space-time, physicists have wondered if his work was the final word.
From 2007 to 2019, left-handers registered a substantially lower velocity for every type of pitch tracked, including not only higher-velocity pitches like fastballs and sinkers, but also sliders, changeups and curves.
What Really Gives Left-Handed Pitchers Their Edge? | Guy Molyneux | August 17, 2020 | FiveThirtyEightThe best light for the pigments to absorb, then, was in the steepest parts of the intensity curve for the solar spectrum — the red and blue parts of the spectrum.
Why Are Plants Green? To Reduce the Noise in Photosynthesis. | Rodrigo Pérez Ortega | July 30, 2020 | Quanta Magazine
She and her sister went into business together in 1997, opening curve Salon after a career in media.
Goodbye To A Natural Hair Guru: Miss Jessie's Cofounder Titi Branch Dead At 45 | Danielle Belton | December 16, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTInstead, break out a form-fitting garment — think skinny jeans or a curve-hugging dress.
12 Thanksgiving Weight Loss Tips That Actually Work | DailyBurn | November 27, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTIn an airline seat, the hips and pelvis rotate forward and the S curve flattens.
Flying Coach Is the New Hell: How Airlines Engineer You Out of Room | Clive Irving | November 25, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTAfter acknowledging that there has been a “bend in the curve” and a reason to hope, he warned against inaction.
“He also said, ‘We might be too ahead of the curve,’” Kudrow remembers.
How Lisa Kudrow Pulled Off TV’s Ultimate ‘Comeback’ | Kevin Fallon | November 6, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTHe drew her back to him, and she yielded and settled closely in the curve of his arm, and he told her the story.
The Homesteader | Oscar MicheauxThere is a sharp curve in the permanent way outside the station, so that a train is on you all of a sudden.
Uncanny Tales | VariousThe tunnel itself includes a reverse curve, and, at the present time, railroad tracks and Stock Creek waters run through it.
Hallowed Heritage: The Life of Virginia | Dorothy M. TorpeyHe kept on grimly, however, never deviating from his perspective, which was the swampy ground on the outer curve of the bend.
The Red Year | Louis TracyThe children watched him disappear around the curve and then turned to Jess expectantly.
The Box-Car Children | Gertrude Chandler Warner
British Dictionary definitions for curve
/ (kɜːv) /
a continuously bending line that has no straight parts
something that curves or is curved, such as a bend in a road or the contour of a woman's body
the act or extent of curving; curvature
maths
a system of points whose coordinates satisfy a given equation; a locus of points
the graph of a function with one independent variable
a line representing data, esp statistical data, on a graph: an unemployment curve
ahead of the curve ahead of the times; ahead of schedule
behind the curve behind the times; behind schedule
short for French curve
to take or cause to take the shape or path of a curve; bend
Origin of curve
1Other words from curve
- Related adjective: sinuous
Derived forms of curve
- curvedly (ˈkɜːvɪdlɪ), adverb
- curvedness, noun
- curvy, adjective
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Scientific definitions for curve
[ kûrv ]
A line or surface that bends in a smooth, continuous way without sharp angles.
The graph of a function on a coordinate plane. In this technical sense, straight lines, circles, and waves are all curves.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Other Idioms and Phrases with curve
see throw a curve.
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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