Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • intransitive verb To give a direction other than perpendicular or horizontal to; make diagonal; cause to slope.
  • intransitive verb To present so as to conform to a particular bias or appeal to a certain audience.
  • intransitive verb To have or go in a direction other than perpendicular or horizontal; slope.
  • noun A line, plane, course, or direction that is other than perpendicular or horizontal; a slope.
  • noun A sloping thing or piece of ground.
  • noun Printing A virgule.
  • noun A personal point of view or opinion.
  • noun A bias.
  • noun Offensive Slang Used as a disparaging term for a person of East Asian birth or ancestry.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • Sloping; oblique; inclined from a direct line or plane.
  • noun An oblique direction or plane; a slope.
  • noun An oblique reflection or gibe; a sarcastic remark.
  • noun A chance; an opportunity.
  • To lie obliquely to some line, whether horizontal or perpendicular; slope: as, a slanting roof.
  • To go or turn off at a small angle from some direct line; deviate: as, at this point the road slants off to the right. Specifically
  • To exaggerate; “draw the long bow”; fib.
  • To have a leaning; incline.
  • To give a sloping direction to; set or place at an angle to something else: as, slant the mirror a little more.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun A slanting direction or plane; a slope.
  • noun An oblique reflection or gibe; a sarcastic remark.
  • noun a local variation of the wind from its general direction.
  • transitive verb To turn from a direct line; to give an oblique or sloping direction to.
  • adjective Inclined from a direct line, whether horizontal or perpendicular; sloping; oblique.
  • intransitive verb To be turned or inclined from a right line or level; to lie obliquely; to slope.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A slope or incline.
  • noun A bias, tendency, or leaning; a perspective or angle.
  • noun pejorative, ethnic slur A person of Asian descent.
  • verb To lean, tilt or incline.
  • verb To bias or skew.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun a biased way of looking at or presenting something
  • noun degree of deviation from a horizontal plane
  • verb lie obliquely
  • verb present with a bias
  • verb to incline or bend from a vertical position
  • verb heel over

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Alteration of obsolete slent, from Middle English slenten, to fall aslant, perhaps of Scandinavian origin.]

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Examples

Comments

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  • Tell all the Truth but tell it slant--

    Success in Circuit lies

    Too bright for our infirm Delight

    The Truth's superb surprise

    As Lightning to the Children eased

    With explanation kind

    The Truth must dazzle gradually

    Or every man be blind--

    -- Emily Dickinson's 1129

    August 12, 2010