slope

Meanings

1. 1nouncountable

   A surface or area of ground where one end is higher than the other.

   Grammar: Counts one incline: a steep slope, two slopes; often with of/on.

   Patterns

   • a steep/gentle slope
   • the slope of something
   • on a slope

   The children slid down the snowy slope on cardboard.

   Our backyard has a gentle slope toward the creek.

2. 2nounusually singularmathematics

   The steepness of a line, found by dividing vertical change by horizontal change.

   Grammar: Often singular in phrases like the slope of a line; uncountable when speaking about steepness generally.

   Patterns

   • the slope of a line
   • calculate the slope
   • a positive/negative slope

   A steeper line has a larger slope.

   The graph rises slowly, so its slope is small but positive.

Word forms

Common combinations

steep slope

Cars struggled on the steep slope after the rain.

gentle slope

The path follows a gentle slope to the lake.

slope of a line

Students compared the slope of each line on the graph.

Synonyms and how they differ

incline

Incline is a more formal word for a sloping surface; slope is the everyday word.

gradient

Gradient is common in science and engineering for rate of rise; slope is broader.

hillside

Hillside means the side of a hill, not any measured incline.

Opposites

Word family

sloping adjective

Rising or falling at an angle: a sloping roof.

sloped adjective

Having a slope, often designed that way: a sloped seat.

slope verb

To lie or move at an angle: the path slopes down.

Commonly confused: slope or slop?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “slope”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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