curve

[ kurv ]

/ kɜrv /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR curve ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

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).

Also called curve ball, curveball. Baseball.

a pitch delivered with a spin that causes the ball to veer from a normal straight path, away from the side from which it was thrown.
the course of such a pitched ball.

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.

a misleading or deceptive trick; cheat; deception.

Education. a grading system based on the scale of performance of a group, so that those performing better, regardless of their actual knowledge of the subject, receive high grades: The new English professor marks on a curve.Compare absolute(def 10).

a curved guide used in drafting.

verb (used with object), curved, curv·ing.

to bend in a curve; cause to take the course of a curve.

to grade on a curve.

Baseball. to pitch a curve to.

verb (used without object), curved, curv·ing.

to bend in a curve; take the course of a curve.

adjective

having the shape of a curve; curved.

RELATED WORDS

bender, curve, googly, slurve

Nearby words

curvature aberration, curvature hyperopia, curvature myopia, curvature of field, curvature of space, curve, curve ball, curve fitting, curve of occlusion, curvet, curvette

Idioms

ahead of/behindthe curve, at the forefront of (or lagging behind) recent developments, trends, etc.

throw (someone) a curve,

to take (someone) by surprise, especially in a negative way.
to mislead or deceive.

Origin of curve

1565–75; (< Middle French) < Latin curvus crooked, bent, curved

Related forms

curv·ed·ly

[kur-vid-lee] /ˈkɜr vɪd li/, adverbcurv·ed·ness, nouncurve·less, adjectiveun·curved, adjective

un·curv·ing, adjectiveun·der·curve, nounun·der·curve, verb (used without object), un·der·curved, un·der·curv·ing.well-curved, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

British Dictionary definitions for curve ball (1 of 2)

curve ball

noun

baseball a ball pitched in a curving path so as to make it more difficult to hit

informal something deceptivehis wholesome image was a curve ball thrown to deceive the public

British Dictionary definitions for curve ball (2 of 2)

curve

/ (kɜːv) /

noun

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 graphan 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

verb

to take or cause to take the shape or path of a curve; bend

Related forms

Related adjective: sinuous

Derived Forms

curvedly (ˈkɜːvɪdlɪ), adverbcurvedness, nouncurvy, adjective

Word Origin for curve

C15: from Latin curvāre to bend, from curvus crooked

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

Medicine definitions for curve ball

curve

[ kûrv ]

n.

A line or surface that deviates from straightness in a smooth, continuous fashion.

Something characterized by such a line or surface, especially a rounded line or contour of the human body.

A curved line representing variations in data on a graph.

v.

To move in or take the shape of a curve.

Science definitions for curve ball

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.

Idioms and Phrases with curve ball

curve

see throw a curve.

curve

noun

verb (used with object), curved, curv·ing.

verb (used without object), curved, curv·ing.

adjective

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RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Idioms

Origin of curve

Related forms

British Dictionary definitions for curve ball (1 of 2)

curve ball

noun

British Dictionary definitions for curve ball (2 of 2)

curve

noun

verb

Related forms

Derived Forms

Word Origin for curve

Medicine definitions for curve ball

curve

n.

v.

Science definitions for curve ball

curve

Idioms and Phrases with curve ball

curve