slope

1 of 3

adjective

ˈslōp 

: that slants : sloping

—often used in combination

slope-sided

slope

2 of 3

verb

sloped; sloping

intransitive verb

1

: to take an oblique course

2

: to lie or fall in a slant : incline

3

: go, travel

… slopes off into the night …

—Wolcott Gibbs

transitive verb

: to cause to incline or slant

sloper noun

slope

3 of 3

noun

1

: ground that forms a natural or artificial incline

2

: upward or downward slant or inclination or degree of slant

3

: the part of a continent draining to a particular ocean

Alaska's North Slope

4

a

: the tangent of the angle made by a straight line with the x-axis

b

: the slope of the line tangent to a plane curve at a point

Synonyms of slope

Verb

• tilt
• angle
• incline
• lean

Noun

• incline
• inclination
• gradient

Examples of slope in a Sentence

Verb

His handwriting slopes to the left.

they sloped our new driveway too steeply and now my car scrapes bottom whenever I back out onto the street

Noun

They climbed the steep slope.

What is the angle of the slope?

You can adjust the slope of the ramp.

a slope of 30 degrees

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

There’s no spa, but the outdoor pool and hot tubs are perfect for easing post-slope muscle soreness, and guests can make use of complimentary Therabody recovery tools. — Siobhan Reid, Vogue, 25 Nov. 2025

Travelers can stay at Hotel Catedral Patagonia, which has a spa for post-slope relaxation. — Stacey Leasca, Travel + Leisure, 25 Feb. 2026

Verb

Because its site slopes steeply, the house has upstairs and downstairs entrances. — Dean Kaufman, Curbed, 30 June 2026

The intention is for native plants and wildlife to remain undisturbed in the sloping steeps. — Lara Johnson-Wheeler, Vogue, 3 July 2026

Noun

The cliffs and steep slopes have made the job even harder, said Alyssa Mason, a spokesperson assigned to the fire. — Michael R. Sisak, Chicago Tribune, 28 June 2026

The stock needs to stop making lower highs, rebuild a base, and reclaim its 200-day with the slope turning higher again. — Josh Brown,sean Russo, CNBC, 29 June 2026

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English sloop, probably from aslope, adverb, at an angle

First Known Use

Adjective

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1591, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Noun

circa 1568, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing slope

• bunny slope
• continental slope
• glide slope
• nursery slope
• slippery slope
• slope-intercept form
• slope off

Rhymes for slope

• cope
• dope
• grope
• lope
• mope
• nope
• rope
• scope
• shope
• soap
• stope
• swope

Kids Definition

slope

1 of 3 adjective

ˈslōp 

: that slants : sloping

slope

2 of 3 verb

sloped; sloping

: to take a slanting direction : give a slant to : incline

sloper noun

slope

3 of 3 noun

1

: ground that forms a natural or artificial incline

2

: upward or downward slant or degree of slant

3

: the ratio of the change in a vertical direction to the change in a horizontal direction between any two points on the graph of a straight line