slope

[slohp]

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SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR slope ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used without object), sloped, slop·ing.

to have or take an inclined or oblique direction or angle considered with reference to a vertical or horizontal plane; slant.

to move at an inclination or obliquely: They sloped gradually westward.

verb (used with object), sloped, slop·ing.

to direct at a slant or inclination; incline from the horizontal or vertical: The sun sloped its beams.

to form with a slope or slant: to slope an embankment.

noun

ground that has a natural incline, as the side of a hill.

inclination or slant, especially downward or upward.

deviation from the horizontal or vertical.

an inclined surface.

Usually slopes. hills, especially foothills or bluffs: the slopes of Mt. Kilimanjaro.

Mathematics.

the tangent of the angle between a given straight line and the x-axis of a system of Cartesian coordinates.
the derivative of the function whose graph is a given curve evaluated at a designated point.

Slang: Extremely Disparaging and Offensive. a contemptuous term used to refer to a person of East Asian origin, especially a Vietnamese or other South Asian.

Idioms

slope off, Chiefly British Slang. to make one's way out slowly or furtively.

Origin of slope

1495–1505; aphetic variant of aslope; akin to slip¹

Related formsslop·ing·ly, adverbslop·ing·ness, nounun·sloped, adjectiveun·slop·ing, adjective

Synonyms for slope

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR slope ON THESAURUS.COM

1. Slope, slant mean to incline away from a relatively straight surface or line used as a reference. To slope is to incline vertically in an oblique direction: The ground slopes ( upward or downward ) sharply here. To slant is to fall to one side, to lie obliquely to some line whether horizontal or perpendicular: The road slants off to the right.

Usage note

See slant-eyed.

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

Related Words for slope

shelf, ramp, hill, declivity, tip, cant, bias, bend, pitch, swag, descent, gradient, skew, lean, sway, inclination, deviation, rise, diagonal, downgrade

Examples from the Web for slope

Contemporary Examples of slope

As dusk approaches, a fog creeps up the slope of the mountain and swallows the sprawling city below—just like Pablo promised.
Pablo Escobar’s Private Prison Is Now Run by Monks for Senior Citizens
Jeff Campagna
June 7, 2014
They buried a stockpile of rifles and machine guns on a slope just above the building that was to house the inmates.
Pablo Escobar’s Private Prison Is Now Run by Monks for Senior Citizens
Jeff Campagna
June 7, 2014
The current had been wearing away the bottom of the slope, making a slide inevitable, said authors Daniel and Lynn Rodgers Miller.
Rescue Efforts Were Delayed Following Deadly Landslide in Washington
Stacey Solie
March 26, 2014
He nudged with a foot at a busted-out bucket, moving easier now, down the slope—more old gear in the grass.
The Ballad of Johnny France
Richard Ben Cramer
January 12, 2014
Fifteen minutes after leaving the town, he told us to park our Land Cruiser at the base of a slope and ascend by foot.
U.N. Ambassador Designate Samantha Power’s Greatest Journalistic Hits
Caitlin Dickson
June 6, 2013

Historical Examples of slope

He descended the slope, and sat down in the shade of a broad-leaved tree.
Brave and Bold
Horatio Alger
And up the slope, brandishing their sticks, charged the town boys.
The Boy Life of Napoleon
Eugenie Foa
At this moment a roar of astonishment came up to them from down the slope.
The Leopard Woman
Stewart Edward White
They passed the gate which was opened for them and began to mount the slope beyond.
Fair Margaret
H. Rider Haggard
There was a pleasant farmhouse out of town on the slope of Vesuvius.
Buried Cities: Pompeii, Olympia, Mycenae
Jennie Hall

British Dictionary definitions for slope

slope

verb

to lie or cause to lie at a slanting or oblique angle

(intr) (esp of natural features) to follow an inclined coursemany paths sloped down the hillside

(intr; foll by off, away, etc) to go furtively

(tr) military (formerly) to hold (a rifle) in the slope position (esp in the command slope arms)

noun

an inclined portion of ground

(plural) hills or foothills

any inclined surface or line

the degree or amount of such inclination

maths

(of a line) the tangent of the angle between the line and another line parallel to the x- axis
the first derivative of the equation of a curve at a given point

(formerly) the position adopted for British military drill when the rifle is rested on the shoulder

US slang, derogatory a person from Southeast Asia, especially a Vietnamese

Derived Formssloper, nounsloping, adjectiveslopingly, adverbslopingness, noun

Word Origin for slope

C15: short for aslope, perhaps from the past participle of Old English āslūpan to slip away, from slūpan to slip

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 slope

1590s, "go in an oblique direction," from earlier adjective meaning "slanting" (c.1500), probably from Middle English aslope (adv.) "on the incline" (late 15c.), from Old English *aslopen, past participle of aslupan "to slip away," from a- "away" + slupan "to slip" (see sleeve). From 1709 as "to be in a slanting position;" transitive sense "place in a slanting position" is from c.1600. Related: Sloped; sloping.

1610s, "inclination," from slope (v.). Meaning "an incline, a slant (of ground)" is from 1620s. Derogatory slang meaning "Oriental person" is attested from 1948.