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definitions

slant

[slant, slahnt]
See more synonyms for slant on Thesaurus.com
verb (used without object)
  1. to veer or angle away from a given level or line, especially from a horizontal; slope.
  2. to have or be influenced by a subjective point of view, bias, personal feeling or inclination, etc. (usually followed by toward).
verb (used with object)
  1. to cause to slope.
  2. to distort (information) by rendering it unfaithfully or incompletely, especially in order to reflect a particular viewpoint: He slanted the news story to discredit the Administration.
  3. to write, edit, or publish for the interest or amusement of a specific group of readers: a story slanted toward young adults.
noun
  1. slanting or oblique direction; slope: the slant of a roof.
  2. a slanting line, surface, etc.
  3. virgule.
  4. a mental leaning, bias, or distortion: His mind shows a curious slant.
  5. viewpoint; opinion; attitude: Let him give you his slant.
  6. Informal. a glance or look.
  7. Also called angle. Journalism. the particular mood or vein in which something is written, edited, or published: His column always has a humorous slant.
  8. Football.
    1. an offensive play in which the ball-carrier runs toward the line of scrimmage at an angle.
    2. Also called slant-in.a pass pattern in which a receiver cuts diagonally across the middle of the field.
  9. Also called slant-eye [slant-ahy, slahnt-ahy] /ˈslæntˌaɪ, ˈslɑntˌaɪ/. Slang: Extremely Disparaging and Offensive. a contemptuous term used to refer to a person from East Asia, especially a Chinese or Japanese person.
adjective
  1. sloping; oblique: a slant roof; a slant approach.

Origin of slant

First recorded in 1485–95; aphetic variant of aslant
Related formsslant·ing·ly, slant·ly, adverbun·slant·ed, adjectiveun·slant·ing, adjective

Synonyms for slant

See more synonyms for on Thesaurus.com
1. lean, incline. See slope. 6. incline, inclination, pitch, obliquity, obliqueness.

Usage note

See slant-eyed.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for slant

leaning, angle, predisposition, viewpoint, tilt, skew, orient, warp, incline, gradient, rake, lean, diagonal, grade, cant, declination, ramp, pitch, inclination, camber

Examples from the Web for slant

Contemporary Examples of slant

Historical Examples of slant

  • A puff of wind and a slant of rain, as I've been saying to my gel here.

  • A bluebottle buzzed about the ceiling; a slant of sunlight crossed the floor.

    A Son of Hagar

    Sir Hall Caine

  • The slant of the moonlight had died off the floor, and all was dark.

    A Son of Hagar

    Sir Hall Caine

  • "Just a slant of rain maybe, and a puff of wind," said Csar.

    The Manxman

    Hall Caine

  • Put a pencil in it, letting the pencil rest at a slant from left to right.

    Common Science

    Carleton W. Washburne

British Dictionary definitions for slant

slant

verb
  1. to incline or be inclined at an oblique or sloping angle
  2. (tr) to write or present (news, etc) with a bias
  3. (intr foll by towards) (of a person's opinions) to be biased
noun
  1. an inclined or oblique line or direction; slope
  2. a way of looking at something
  3. a bias or opinion, as in an article
  4. a less technical name for solidus
  5. on a slant or on the slant sloping
adjective
  1. oblique, sloping
Derived Formsslanting, adjectiveslantingly or slantly, adverb

Word Origin for slant

C17: short for aslant, probably of Scandinavian origin
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
Word Origin and History for slant
v.

1520s, "to strike obliquely" (against something), alteration of slenten "slip sideways" (c.1300), perhaps via a Scandinavian source (cf. Swedish slinta "to slip," Norwegian slenta "to fall on one side"), from Proto-Germanic *slintanan. Intransitive sense of "to slope, to lie obliquely" is first recorded 1690s; transitive sense of "to give a sloping direction to" is from 1805. Related: Slanted; slanting. As an adverb from late 15c.; as an adjective from 1610s. Slant rhyme attested from 1944.

n.

1650s, "an oblique direction or plane" (originally of landforms), from slant (v.). Meaning "a way of regarding something" is from 1905. Derogatory slang sense of "a slant-eyed Asian person" is recorded from 1943, from earlier slant-eyes (1929).

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper