oblique
neither perpendicular nor parallel to a given line or surface; slanting; sloping.
(of a solid) not having the axis perpendicular to the plane of the base.
diverging from a given straight line or course.
not straight or direct, as a course.
indirectly stated or expressed; not straightforward: oblique remarks about the candidate's honesty.
indirectly aimed at or reached, as ends or results; deviously achieved.
morally, ethically, or mentally wrong; underhand; perverse.
Typography. (of a letter) slanting toward the right, as a form of sans-serif, gothic, or square-serif type.
Rhetoric. indirect (applied to discourse in which the original words of a speaker or writer are assimilated to the language of the reporter).
Anatomy. pertaining to muscles running obliquely in the body as opposed to those running transversely or longitudinally.
Botany. having unequal sides, as a leaf.
Grammar. noting or pertaining to any case of noun inflection except nominative and vocative: Latin genitive, dative, accusative, and ablative cases are said to be oblique.
Drafting. designating a method of projection (oblique projection ) in which a three-dimensional object is represented by a drawing (oblique drawing ) in which the face, usually parallel to the picture plane, is represented in accurate or exact proportion, and all other faces are shown at any convenient angle other than 90°.: Compare axonometric, cabinet (def. 19), isometric (def. 5).
Military. at an angle of 45°.
something that is oblique.
Grammar. an oblique case.
Anatomy. any of several oblique muscles, especially in the walls of the abdomen.
Origin of oblique
1Other words for oblique
Other words from oblique
- o·blique·ness, noun
- sub·o·blique, adjective
- sub·o·blique·ly, adverb
- sub·o·blique·ness, noun
Words Nearby oblique
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use oblique in a sentence
To target your obliques—the muscles on the sides of your stomach—slide your knee into your chest diagonally.
The wait for assistance for a taxed bullpen, meanwhile, ended when Wander Suero was reinstated from the injured list following a left oblique strain.
No relief in sight for the Nationals, who fall to the Phillies in 10 innings | Gene Wang | May 13, 2021 | Washington PostLikewise, while it seems imbedded with symbolism that is keyed to deeply personal associations from its creators – much like the work of David Lynch – those symbols are at once too ordinary and too oblique to make us care.
Queer horror film chokes on surrealist pretensions in ‘The One You Feed’ | John Paul King | January 15, 2021 | Washington BladeSatellites can only peer down on smoke plumes from above or from oblique angles, and their payload is limited to lighter instruments.
Wildfire smoke travels far but never really disappears | Juliet Grable | October 7, 2020 | Popular-ScienceThat said, the season seven writers never quite figured out how to hit the oblique angles in their relationship the way Sherman-Palladino did — the insults inside the compliments, the declarations of love inside the insults.
The definition of “innuendo,” according to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, is “an oblique allusion.”
Bill Cosby’s Long List of Accusers (So Far): 18 Alleged Sexual Assault Victims Between 1965-2004 | Marlow Stern | November 24, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThe Playlist, on the other hand, called it “too oblique, too delighted with itself, and frankly, too dull to admire…much.”
Josh Charles on Life After ‘The Good Wife’ and His Insane Movie ‘Bird People’ | Kevin Fallon | September 13, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTAn oblique view of baseball full of hijinks, havoc, and humor, this is fandom to the extreme.
Home Runs, Frozen Ropes, And Some Wild Cards In Best Baseball Books | Robert Birnbaum | April 11, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThe historical event, however, serves as an oblique background for the novel.
Yiyun Li Takes on Evil in “Kinder Than Solitude” | Jane Ciabattari | February 27, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThe columns are frequently laced with oblique references to her family.
Pippa and The Middletons Face New 'Cashing-In' Allegations | Tom Sykes | December 4, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTEven the hardy Mohammedan was haggard and spent, and his oblique eyes glowed like the red embers of a dying fire.
The Red Year | Louis TracyEven the light eyes seemed to have grown slightly oblique; the voice, the unimpassioned greeting, were those of a son of Cathay.
Dope | Sax RohmerTesta minuta oblique conica tenuis pellucida linea albida opaca et fasciis coccineis ornata, anfractibus valde convexis.
Like the beams of the winter sun which have little warmth in them, the line of our vision is somewhat oblique.
Hymns from the East | John BrownlieIn the Ordish system a certain number of intermediate points in the span are supported by oblique chains, on which girders rest.
British Dictionary definitions for oblique
/ (əˈbliːk) /
at an angle; slanting; sloping
geometry
(of lines, planes, etc) neither perpendicular nor parallel to one another or to another line, plane, etc
not related to or containing a right angle
indirect or evasive
grammar denoting any case of nouns, pronouns, etc, other than the nominative and vocative
biology having asymmetrical sides or planes: an oblique leaf
(of a map projection) constituting a type of zenithal projection in which the plane of projection is tangential to the earth's surface at some point between the equator and the poles
something oblique, esp a line
another name for solidus (def. 1)
nautical the act of changing course by less than 90°
an aerial photograph taken at an oblique angle
to take or have an oblique direction
(of a military formation) to move forward at an angle
Origin of oblique
1Derived forms of oblique
- obliquely, adverb
- obliqueness, noun
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
Browse