gradient

«gradient» in Mova's school dictionary: How steep a slope, hill or road is — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples.

part of speech

noun (a gradient, gradients)

meaning for a pupil

1) How steep a slope, hill or road is. tree →

2) (maths) A number that shows how steep a line is on a graph. tree →

3) (art) A smooth change from one colour or shade to another. tree →

sense in the lessons

In maths: gradient = rise ÷ run (how far up for each step across). In geography: steep gradients on hills, road signs give gradients like 10% (1 in 10). In art and computing: a colour gradient from light to dark.

examples

• The road has a steep gradient. tree →
• A sign warns of a 1 in 10 gradient. tree →
• Work out the gradient of the line. tree →
• The cyclist struggled up the gradient. tree →
• The picture has a blue to white gradient. tree →
• A gentle gradient is easier to walk up. tree →

note

Countable. Pronounced GRAY-dee-ent. In maths: gradient = change in up ÷ change across; a bigger number means steeper; 10% = 1 in 10 = rises 10 m for every 100 m across. In the US, a road's slope is often called «grade».

Trees and pragmatics

Every meaning and example of «gradient» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.