tilt

[ tilt ]

See synonyms for: tilt tilted tilting on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object)

to cause to lean, incline, slope, or slant.
to rush at or charge, as in a joust.

to hold poised for attack, as a lance.
to move (a camera) up or down on its vertical axis for photographing or televising a moving character, object, or the like.

verb (used without object)

to move into or assume a sloping position or direction.
to strike, thrust, or charge with a lance or the like (usually followed by at).

to engage in a joust, tournament, or similar contest.
(of a camera) to move on its vertical axis: The camera tilts downward for an overhead shot.
to incline in opinion, feeling, etc.; lean: She's tilting toward the other candidate this year.

noun

an act or instance of tilting.
the state of being tilted; a sloping position.

a slope.
a joust or any other contest.
a dispute; controversy.
a thrust of a weapon, as at a tilt or joust.
(in aerial photography) the angle formed by the direction of aim of a camera and a perpendicular to the surface of the earth.

Idioms about tilt

(at) full tilt. full tilt.
tilt at windmills, to contend against imaginary opponents or injustices.: Also fight with windmills.

Origin of tilt

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English tilte(n), tilt(e), tult “to fall down, upset, tumble,” akin to Old English tealt “unsteady,” tealtian “to stumble”; compare dialectal Norwegian tylta “to tiptoe,” tylten “unsteady,” Swedish tulta “to totter”

Other words from tilt

tilt·a·ble, adjective
tilter, noun

Words Nearby tilt

Other definitions for tilt (2 of 2)

tilt²

[ tilt ]

noun

a cover of coarse cloth, canvas, etc., as for a wagon.
an awning.

verb (used with object)

to furnish with a tilt.

Origin of tilt

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English teld(e), telt(e), tild(e) “dwelling (temporary or permanent), fort, tent,” Old English teld “tent, pavilion”; cognate with German Zelt “tent,” Old Norse tjald “tent, tapestry, curtain”

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use tilt in a sentence

Second, you can compare the partisan tilt of the old maps and the new maps at a glance via the two waffle charts below the map.
How To Make Sense Of Our Redistricting Tracker | Nathaniel Rakich (nathaniel.rakich@fivethirtyeight.com) | August 9, 2021 | FiveThirtyEight
It wobbles, the angle of its tilt changes and even its orbit changes to bring the Earth closer to or farther from the Sun.
What Will The Earth Be Like In 500 Years? | LGBTQ-Editor | August 9, 2021 | No Straight News
Cloud Massage The Cloud Massage Shiatsu Foot Massager Machine features a platform with a tilt bar.
Best foot massager for for a spa experience in your home | Irena Collaku | July 28, 2021 | Popular-Science
It just was orchestrated within an inch of its life, where every tilt of the head and smile seemed like it was running a carefully executed program.
Why Did It Take So Long to Believe Britney Spears? | Kevin Fallon | June 25, 2021 | The Daily Beast
Taylor-Johnson said that Freeman, whose voice also begins each episode, would introduce slight, subtle moves that place his performance into believable reality — such as a backward tilt of the head as he ponders a response to his scene partner.
‘Solos’ is a veritable who’s who of actors. Here’s why it needed ‘true masters of the craft.’ | Matt Hurwitz | May 20, 2021 | Washington Post

Dinosaurs like Donald Sterling draw the ire of Americans, regardless of political affiliation or ideological tilt.
How We Got to Ferguson—a Reading List | David Masciotra | August 23, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Seasons on Earth and Titan are both due to the tilt of their axis—the way the North Pole faces—relative to their orbit.
A Cloud Forms Over Saturn’s Mysterious Moon | Matthew R. Francis | August 17, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
When out and about, if we feel threatened, as we always do, we tilt our heads back and cry out, “ALL THE SINGLE LADIES!”
Getting to Know the ‘Beyoncé Voter’ | Kelly Williams Brown | July 7, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
This tilt towards of the financial elites, as Elizabeth Warren has noted, occurred during both the Bush and Obama Administrations.
Dawn of the Age of Oligarchy: the Alliance between Government and the 1% | Joel Kotkin | June 28, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
The solution could be right at your fingertips, with a simple tilt of a glass.
Vessyl: A Smart Cup That Counts Liquid Calories | DailyBurn | June 20, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Only in the carnage of the head, the tilt of the chin, was the insolence expressed that had made her many enemies.
Ancestors | Gertrude Atherton
Then when my hair had been parted and smoothed down, I crowned myself with my campaign hat at the dashingest possible tilt.
The Soldier of the Valley | Nelson Lloyd
In the pitchy darkness, the messenger encounters him, and running full tilt against him, knocks the bunch of keys into the mud.
Skipper Worse | Alexander Lange Kielland
He looked at Mandleco with immense disdain, gave a pert tilt of his head and surveyed the room with a grimace of distaste.
We're Friends, Now | Henry Hasse
I resolved, however, another time, never to tilt with a French lady in compliment.
Travels through the South of France and the Interior of Provinces of Provence and Languedoc in the Years 1807 and 1808 | Lt-Col. Pinkney

British Dictionary definitions for tilt (1 of 2)

tilt¹

/ (tɪlt) /

verb

to incline or cause to incline at an angle
(usually intr) to attack or overthrow (a person or people) in a tilt or joust

(when intr, often foll by at) to aim or thrust: to tilt a lance
(tr) to work or forge with a tilt hammer

noun

a slope or angle: at a tilt
the act of tilting

(esp in medieval Europe)
- a jousting contest
- a thrust with a lance or pole delivered during a tournament
an attempt to win a contest
See tilt hammer
full tilt or at full tilt at full speed or force

Origin of tilt

Old English tealtian; related to Dutch touteren to totter, Norwegian tylta to tiptoe, tylten unsteady

Derived forms of tilt

tilter, noun

British Dictionary definitions for tilt (2 of 2)

tilt²

/ (tɪlt) /

noun

an awning or canopy, usually of canvas, for a boat, booth, etc

verb

(tr) to cover or provide with a tilt

Origin of tilt

Old English teld; related to Old High German zelt tent, Old Norse tjald tent

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

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