Incline vs. Slope — What's the Difference?

A surface that slopes up or down.

The angle or gradient of a surface that rises or falls.

An upward slope, especially in a road or path.

A piece of ground that has a natural incline.

To tilt something in a sloping position.

In mathematics, the steepness, incline, or grade of a line.

A mechanism on exercise equipment to simulate uphill movement.

To position something at an angle.

To feel favorably disposed towards something or someone.

To move stealthily or furtively.

To cause (someone) to have a certain tendency

In mathematics, the slope or gradient of a line is a number that describes both the direction and the steepness of the line. Slope is often denoted by the letter m; there is no clear answer to the question why the letter m is used for slope, but its earliest use in English appears in O'Brien (1844) who wrote the equation of a straight line as "y = mx + b" and it can also be found in Todhunter (1888) who wrote it as "y = mx + c".Slope is calculated by finding the ratio of the "vertical change" to the "horizontal change" between (any) two distinct points on a line.

To dispose (someone) to have a certain preference or opinion or to take a course of action

A surface of which one end or side is at a higher level than another; a rising or falling surface

To cause to lean, slant, or slope

A person from East Asia, especially Vietnam.

To bend or lower in a nod or bow

(of a surface or line) be inclined from a horizontal or vertical line; slant up or down

To be disposed to a certain preference, opinion, or course of action

Move in an idle or aimless manner

To deviate from the horizontal or vertical; slant

To diverge from the vertical or horizontal; incline

To lower or bend the head or body, as in a nod or bow.

To move or walk

An inclined surface; a slope or gradient

To cause to slope

(transitive) To bend or move (something) out of a given plane or direction, often the horizontal or vertical.

An inclined line, surface, plane, position, or direction.

(intransitive) To slope.

A stretch of ground forming a natural or artificial incline

To tend to do or believe something, or move or be moved in a certain direction, away from a point of view, attitude, etc.

A deviation from the horizontal.

A slope.

The amount or degree of such deviation.

A portal of a subway tunnel.

The rate at which an ordinate of a point of a line on a coordinate plane changes with respect to a change in the abscissa.

To deviate from a line, direction, or course, toward an object; to lean; to tend; as, converging lines incline toward each other; a road inclines to the north or south.

The tangent of the angle of inclination of a line, or the slope of the tangent line for a curve or surface.

Fig.: To lean or tend, in an intellectual or moral sense; to favor an opinion, a course of conduct, or a person; to have a propensity or inclination; to be disposed.

Offensive Slang Used as a disparaging term for a person of East Asian birth or ancestry.

To bow; to incline the head.

An area of ground that tends evenly upward or downward.

To cause to deviate from a line, position, or direction; to give a leaning, bend, or slope to; as, incline the column or post to the east; incline your head to the right.

The degree to which a surface tends upward or downward.

To impart a tendency or propensity to, as to the will or affections; to turn; to dispose; to influence.

(mathematics) The ratio of the vertical and horizontal distances between two points on a line; zero if the line is horizontal, undefined if it is vertical.

To bend; to cause to stoop or bow; as, to incline the head or the body in acts of reverence or civility.

(mathematics) The slope of the line tangent to a curve at a given point.

An inclined plane; an ascent or descent; a grade or gradient; a slope.

The angle a roof surface makes with the horizontal, expressed as a ratio of the units of vertical rise to the units of horizontal length (sometimes referred to as run).

An elevated geological formation;

A person of Chinese or other East Asian descent.

An inclined surface or roadway that moves traffic from one level to another

(intransitive) To tend steadily upward or downward.

Have a tendency or disposition to do or be something; be inclined;

(transitive) To form with a slope; to give an oblique or slanting direction to; to incline or slant.

Bend or turn (one's ear) towards a speaker in order to listen well;

To try to move surreptitiously.

Lower or bend (the head or upper body), as in a nod or bow;

(military) To hold a rifle at a slope with forearm perpendicular to the body in front holding the butt, the rifle resting on the shoulder.

Be at an angle;

(obsolete) Sloping.

Make receptive or willing towards an action or attitude or belief;

(obsolete) slopingly

An oblique direction; a line or direction including from a horizontal line or direction; also, sometimes, an inclination, as of one line or surface to another.

Any ground whose surface forms an angle with the plane of the horizon.

The part of a continent descending toward, and draining to, a particular ocean; as, the Pacific slope.

Sloping.

In a sloping manner.

To form with a slope; to give an oblique or slanting direction to; to direct obliquely; to incline; to slant; as, to slope the ground in a garden; to slope a piece of cloth in cutting a garment.

To take an oblique direction; to be at an angle with the plane of the horizon; to incline; as, the ground slopes.

To depart; to disappear suddenly.

An elevated geological formation;

The property possessed by a line or surface that departs from the horizontal;

Be at an angle;

An incline can increase the difficulty and intensity of physical activities like walking or running.

No, inclines can be both natural, like hills, or man-made, such as ramps and inclined planes in machinery.

While related, incline is more general, referring to the physical surface, and slope is a specific measurement.

Slope is commonly used in mathematics, construction, and geography.

An incline is a surface that has a gradual rise or fall in elevation.

Yes, in economics and finance, the term slope is used to describe the direction and steepness of a line on a graph, indicating trends over time.

Slope refers to the mathematical measure of how steep a surface is.

Slope is described using ratios, percentages, or angles, depending on the context.

In driving, understanding slope is crucial for navigating hills safely, especially in terms of controlling speed and managing brake use.

A gentle incline refers to a slight, often barely noticeable rise, while a steep slope indicates a sharp increase in elevation, which can be challenging to ascend or descend.

An incline is typically measured by its rise over run, which can also be described as its slope, though it may be referred to more qualitatively in everyday contexts.

For steep inclines, it’s important to consider the risk of slipping or rolling, and appropriate safety measures like handrails or textured surfaces might be necessary.

Architects use slope to ensure proper drainage, create aesthetic elements, and design buildings that are integrated with their natural surroundings.

Slope is critical in water management, influencing how water drains from surfaces and contributes to erosion control and landscape design.

Yes, devices like clinometers and inclinometers are specifically designed to measure the angle or steepness of a slope.