Added 9 October 2026
incline
/ɪnˈklaɪn/ verb
In Latin: clīvus Wiktionary
verb Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about incline at Wordnik → Where our words come from →
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To bend or move (something) out of a given plane or direction, often the horizontal or vertical.
He had to incline his body against the gusts to avoid being blown down in the storm.
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To slope.
Over the centuries the wind made the walls of the farmhouse incline.
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To tend to do or believe something, or move or be moved in a certain direction, away from a point of view, attitude, etc.
He inclines to believe anything he reads in the newspapers.
noun
Origin
From Middle English enclinen, from Old French encliner (modern incliner), from Latin inclīnō (“incline, tilt”), from in- + clīnō (compare -cline), from Proto-Indo-European *ḱley- (English lean).
From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)