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gradient
(redirected from Gradients)

   Also found in: Medical, Financial, Encyclopedia, Wikipedia, Hutchinson 0.01 sec.
gra·di·ent  (grd-nt)
n. Abbr. grad.
1. A rate of inclination; a slope.
2. An ascending or descending part; an incline.
3. Physics The rate at which a physical quantity, such as temperature or pressure, increases or decreases relative to change in a given variable, especially distance.
4. Mathematics A vector having coordinate components that are the partial derivatives of a function with respect to its variables.
5. Biology A series of progressively increasing or decreasing differences in the growth rate, metabolism, or physiological activity of a cell, organ, or organism.

[Perhaps grade + -ient, as in quotient.]

gradient [ˈgreɪdɪənt]
n
1. (Engineering / Civil Engineering) Also called (esp US) grade a part of a railway, road, etc., that slopes upwards or downwards; inclination
2. (Engineering / Civil Engineering) Also called (esp US and Canadian) grade a measure of such a slope, esp the ratio of the vertical distance between two points on the slope to the horizontal distance between them
3. (Physics / General Physics) Physics a measure of the change of some physical quantity, such as temperature or electric potential, over a specified distance
4. (Mathematics) Maths
a.  (of a curve) the slope of the tangent at any point on a curve with respect to the horizontal axis
b.  (of a function, f(x, y, z)) the vector whose components along the axes are the partial derivatives of the function with respect to each variable, and whose direction is that in which the derivative of the function has its maximum value. Usually written: grad f, #X2207;f or #X2207;f Compare curl [11] divergence [4]
adj
sloping uniformly
[from Latin gradiēns stepping, from gradī to go]

gradient  (grd-nt)
1. The degree to which something inclines; a slope. A mountain road with a gradient of ten percent rises one foot for every ten feet of horizontal length.
2. The rate at which a physical quantity, such as temperature or pressure changes over a distance.
3. A operator on scalar fields yielding a vector function, where the value of the vector evaluated at any point indicates the direction and degree of change of the field at that point.
click for a larger image
gradient
The gradient on the left is gentle enough for trees to take root. The gradient on the right is too steep.

The rate of inclination to horizontal expressed as a ratio, such as 1:25, indicating a one unit rise to 25 units of horizontal distance.
ThesaurusLegend:  Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
Noun1.gradientgradient - a graded change in the magnitude of some physical quantity or dimension
change - a relational difference between states; especially between states before and after some event; "he attributed the change to their marriage"
concentration gradient - a gradient in concentration of a solute as a function of distance through a solution; "the movement of a solute down its concentration gradient is called diffusion"
gravity gradient - a gradient in the gravitational forces acting on different parts of a nonspherical object; "the gravity gradient of the moon causes the ocean tides on Earth"
temperature gradient - change in temperature as a function of distance (especially altitude)
2.gradient - the property possessed by a line or surface that departs from the horizontal; "a five-degree gradient"
grade - the gradient of a slope or road or other surface; "the road had a steep grade"
rake, slant, pitch - degree of deviation from a horizontal plane; "the roof had a steep pitch"
precipitousness, steepness, abruptness - the property possessed by a slope that is very steep
gentleness, gradualness - the property possessed by a slope that is very gradual
spatial relation, position - the spatial property of a place where or way in which something is situated; "the position of the hands on the clock"; "he specified the spatial relations of every piece of furniture on the stage"

gradient
noun slope, hill, rise, grade, incline, bank a hill with a gradient of 1 in 3
Translations
gradient [ˈgreɪdɪənt] N (esp Brit) → pendiente f, cuesta f
a gradient of one in sevenuna pendiente del uno por siete

gradient [ˈgreɪdiənt] n
(= slope) → inclinaison f, pente f
(GEOMETRY)gradient m

gradient
n (esp Brit) → Neigung f; (upward also) → Steigung f; (downward also) → Gefälle nt; a gradient of 1 in 10eine Steigung/ein Gefälle von 10%; what is the gradient?wie groß ist die Steigung/das Gefälle?; what is the gradient of the hill?welche Steigung/welches Gefälle hat der Berg?

gradient [ˈgreɪdɪənt] n
a. (of road) → pendenza, gradiente m
a gradient of 1 in 7 → una pendenza del 7 per cento
b. (Math, Phys) → gradiente m

gradient [ˈgreɪdɪənt] n
a. (of road) → pendenza, gradiente m
a gradient of 1 in 7 → una pendenza del 7 per cento
b. (Math, Phys) → gradiente m

gradient
n gradient [ˈgreidiənt]
1 the amount of slope (eg of a road, a railway) a gradient of 1 in 4. styging, helling درجَة المَيْل أو الأنْحِدار градиент stupeň sklonu hældning; hældningsgrad das Gefälle κλίση inclinación, pendiente gradient میزان شیب kaltevuus inclinaison שִׁיפּוּעַ अनुपात nagib lejtősség(i szög) tanjakan halli, hallagráða, stigull pendenza 傾斜度 경사도 gradientas slīpums kecerunan hellingshoek hellings-/skråningsgrad nachylenie declive gradient уклон stupeň sklonu naklon stepen nagiba stignings-, lutningsgrad ความลาดชัน eğim, meyil (derecesi) 傾斜度,梯度 ухил اترتی سڑک یا ریل کی ڈھال کی مقدار độ dốc
2 a slope. helling مُنْحَدَر наклон svah skråning die Neigung πλαγιά cuesta, pendiente kalle شیب rinne pente מוֹרָד ढाल, झुकाव kosina lejtő lereng halli, skái inclinazione 傾斜 경사 nuolydis nogāze; slīpums lereng helling helling, skråning stok inclinação pantă наклон svah pobočje padina lutning, sluttning การเอียง yokuş, bayır 斜面 нахил, спад ڈھلان chỗ dốc


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