gradually

«gradually» in Mova's school dictionary: slowly, a little at a time, over a period, not all at… — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples, with 2 sentences of Mova's corpora that use it.

part of speech

adverb (gradually)

meaning for a pupil

Gradually means slowly, a little at a time, over a period, not all at once or suddenly. tree →

sense in the lessons

In science it describes slow changes: ice gradually melts, a plant gradually grows, the sky gradually gets dark, water gradually evaporates. In maths a line that rises gradually has a gentle slope; a number that gradually increases goes up in small steps. In stories it shows change over time: «gradually she began to feel better». Opposite: suddenly. Phrases: gradually increase, gradually improve, gradually get used to.

examples

• The ice cube gradually melted in the sun. tree →
• My reading gradually got better with practice. tree →
• The sky gradually turned from orange to dark blue. tree →
• Add the flour gradually and keep stirring. tree →
• The temperature gradually dropped during the night. tree →
• The path rose gradually up the hill. tree →
• Gradually, the new boy made friends in the class. tree →
• It wound itself round the stem and gradually got higher and higher. tree →

note

Adverb from the adjective «gradual» (a gradual change). Opposite: «suddenly», «abruptly». Spelled with «-ually»: gradu-al-ly. In maths problems «gradually» means small steady changes, not a jump.

In the corpora

• A cool-down of slow movement after exercise helps the body calm down gradually.
• Breathing faster during exercise is normal, because the muscles need more oxygen, and fitness builds up gradually.

Trees and pragmatics

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