oblique

American  

[uh-bleek, oh-bleek, uh-blahyk, oh-blahyk] / əˈblik, oʊˈblik, əˈblaɪk, oʊˈblaɪk /

adjective

1. neither perpendicular nor parallel to a given line or surface; slanting; sloping.

2. (of a solid) not having the axis perpendicular to the plane of the base.

3. diverging from a given straight line or course.

4. not straight or direct, as a course.

5. indirectly stated or expressed; not straightforward.

   oblique remarks about the candidate's honesty.

   Synonyms:

   covert, masked, veiled, indirect

6. indirectly aimed at or reached, as ends or results; deviously achieved.

   Synonyms:

   covert, masked, veiled, indirect

7. morally, ethically, or mentally wrong; underhand; perverse.

8. Typography. (of a letter) slanting toward the right, as a form of sans-serif, gothic, or square-serif type.

9. Rhetoric. indirect (applied to discourse in which the original words of a speaker or writer are assimilated to the language of the reporter).

10. Anatomy. pertaining to muscles running obliquely in the body as opposed to those running transversely or longitudinally.

11. Botany. having unequal sides, as a leaf.

12. 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.

13. 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°.

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adverb

1. Military. at an angle of 45°.

verb (used without object)

obliqued, obliquing

1. Military. to change direction obliquely.

noun

1. something that is oblique.

2. Grammar. an oblique case.

3. Anatomy. any of several oblique muscles, especially in the walls of the abdomen.

oblique British  

/ əˈbliːk /

adjective

1. at an angle; slanting; sloping

2. geometry

   1. (of lines, planes, etc) neither perpendicular nor parallel to one another or to another line, plane, etc

   2. not related to or containing a right angle

3. indirect or evasive

4. grammar denoting any case of nouns, pronouns, etc, other than the nominative and vocative

5. biology having asymmetrical sides or planes

   an oblique leaf

6. (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

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noun

1. something oblique, esp a line

2. another name for solidus

3. nautical the act of changing course by less than 90°

4. an aerial photograph taken at an oblique angle

verb

1. to take or have an oblique direction

2. (of a military formation) to move forward at an angle

Other Word Forms

• obliquely
  adverb
• obliqueness
  noun
• suboblique
  adjective
• subobliquely
  adverb
• subobliqueness
  noun

Etymology

Origin of oblique

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English oblike, from Latin oblīquus “slanting,” of uncertain origin; perhaps ob- ob- + a second element perhaps akin to licinus “bent, turned upward” or līmus “askew, aslant” ( see also limb)

Explanation

If something is oblique, it has a slanting position or direction. In figurative use, oblique means indirect or purposely misleading. "What is two plus two?" "Fish!" as an answer is completely oblique. In math, this adjective refers to geometric lines or planes that are not parallel or perpendicular to a line or surface. A playground is positioned at an oblique angle to the ground. By correcting the clerk's "Mrs." with "That's Ms. now," the woman made an oblique reference to her change in marital status.

Example Sentences

All eight men finished within 0.12secs of the gold medal, with last-placed Jamaican Oblique Seville crossing the line in 9.91 - a time good enough for fourth at the Tokyo Games.

From BBC • Aug. 5, 2024

Oblique, poetic and sumptuously sung, it’s a welcome moment of Zen.

From New York Times • Dec. 6, 2023

This direct address, and the visual clarity of her preferred typeface, Futura Bold Oblique, were quickly appropriated by the fields Kruger sought to criticize.

From Washington Post • Oct. 4, 2021

Oblique and knee injuries limited Fulmer in 2018, when his ERA rose to 4.69.

From Seattle Times • Feb. 14, 2020

Oblique motions are, in general, the most graceful.

From The Young Gentleman and Lady's Monitor, and English Teacher's Assistant by Moore, John Hamilton

Related Words

• backhanded
• vague