incline
Americanverb (used without object)
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inclines,
present (3rd person singular)
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inclined,
past participle, past
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inclining
present participle
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to deviate from the vertical or horizontal; slant.
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to have a mental tendency, preference, etc.; be disposed.
We incline to rest and relaxation these days.
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to tend, in a physical sense; approximate.
The flowers incline toward blue.
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to tend in character or in course of action.
a political philosophy that inclines toward the conservative.
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to lean; bend.
verb (used with object)
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inclines,
present (3rd person singular)
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inclined,
past participle, past
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inclining
present participle
-
to dispose (a person) in mind, habit, etc. (usually followed byto ).
His attitude did not incline me to help him.
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to bow, nod, or bend (the head, body, etc.).
He inclined his head in greeting.
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to cause to lean or bend in a particular direction.
noun
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inclines
plural
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an inclined surface; slope; slant.
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Railroads.
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Also called incline plane, inclined plane. a cable railroad, the gradient of which is approximately 45°.
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any railroad or portion of a railroad, the gradient of which is too steep for ordinary locomotive adhesion alone to be effective.
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Mining.
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an angled shaft following a dipping vein.
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an inclined haulageway.
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idioms
verb
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to deviate or cause to deviate from a particular plane, esp a vertical or horizontal plane; slope or slant
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to be disposed or cause to be disposed (towards some attitude or to do something)
he inclines towards levity
that does not incline me to think that you are right
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to bend or lower (part of the body, esp the head), as in a bow or in order to listen
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to listen favourably (to)
noun
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an inclined surface or slope; gradient
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short for inclined railway
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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inclinesimple
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inclinessimple
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have inclinedperfect
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has inclinedperfect
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am incliningprogressive
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are incliningprogressive
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is incliningprogressive
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have been incliningperfect progressive
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has been incliningperfect progressive
Past
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inclinedsimple
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had inclinedperfect
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was incliningprogressive
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were incliningprogressive
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had been incliningperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of incline
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English inclinen, from Latin inclīnāre, equivalent to in- in- 2 + -clīnāre “to bend” ( see lean 1); replacing Middle English enclinen, from Middle French, from Latin, as above
Explanation
Something that slopes — that is, something that deviates from the straight horizontal or vertical — can be called an incline. If you like to walk up and down hills, you enjoy walking on inclines. The Latin root of the word incline is inclinare, meaning "to lean." As a verb, the word incline can mean to bend, so you incline your head. It can also mean to be favorably disposed toward something and you can think of it as having a bent for or leaning toward something. If the weather is nasty, you may be inclined to stay home to watch a movie with a bowl of popcorn at your side.
Vocabulary lists containing incline
"The Landlady" by Roald Dahl
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The One and Only Ivan
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Chains
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
It’s not the craziest hike — it’s actually pretty calm — but there are a couple of incline points.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026
The stress and emotional aftermath they’re each facing is a tightrope walk … with an incline.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 13, 2026
Since then, for a host of complicated and mostly unforeseeable reasons, disparate circumstances across the region incline, slowly, in a promising direction.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 1, 2026
"I spoke about Paris being a reference point where hopefully we'll see a pretty steep incline in terms of performances," said Doris.
From Barron's ● Feb. 22, 2026
A short way beyond the way-meeting, after another steep incline, a flying bridge of stone leapt over the chasm and bore the road across into the tumbled slopes and glens of the Morgai.
From "The Return of the King" by J.R.R. Tolkien
Walking around may require navigating steep inclines or stairwell-like sidewalks, but over the past century the city has developed a unique transit system.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 23, 2026
The same can be said of Pabst himself, whose monomaniacal devotion to his art inclines him to ugly compromises.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 4, 2025
There are a couple of entr’actes in which the clown, teased by his former supervisor, inclines toward the Grinchy.
From New York Times ● Nov. 27, 2024
He is rarity - as a mountainous country Eritrea mostly produces "climbers", cyclists who race especially well on steep inclines.
From BBC ● Jul. 19, 2024
It stops at a safe distance and inclines its head.
From "Kwame Crashes the Underworld" by Craig Kofi Farmer
Some had felt Paramount may be more inclined to grant concessions once it had to start increasing its payout to Warner Bros. investors starting Oct.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 23, 2026
Spiritually inclined YouTubers discussed medbed healing in videos about frequencies, crystals, and fifth-dimension consciousness.
From Slate ● Sep. 22, 2026
And most economists and financial professionals are now inclined to believe them.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 19, 2026
“While some investors may be inclined to turn cautious following Vodafone’s recent share price rally, we remain neutral rather than turning more defensive,” he adds.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2026
Barbour thumped his horse fondly on the neck and she inclined her head toward him.
From "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?" by Philip K. Dick
The young woman in the sepia-toned photograph curtsies gracefully, inclining her head and smiling sweetly at the camera.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 23, 2022
The sickening realization of the Titanic's imminent fate came when Jessop turned to say something to a fellow stewardess and saw that the "forward part" of the ship was inclining toward the dark ocean.
From Salon ● Apr. 23, 2022
She would like to see changes, inclining a Senedd creche, the introduction of job shares and an increase in the number of MSs to decrease workload.
From BBC ● Dec. 4, 2021
The rig pitched to the south, away from the beach, her derrick cutting obliquely across the sky and her helipad inclining at an angle that to the human eye read as almost apologetic.
From The Guardian ● May 2, 2017
“French toast,” he said at last, and grew silent for a long period before inclining his head towards me very slightly and saying: “You?”
From "A Walk in the Woods" by Bill Bryson
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
