Lean vs. Slope — What's the Difference?

To rest against something for support.

A surface of which one end or side is at a higher level than another.

To bend or incline towards.

A rising or falling surface.

To incline in preference or opinion.

To incline or tend downward.

To incline from a vertical position.

The degree of steepness or inclination of a surface.

To cause to lean.

To present a sloping or inclined surface.

Be in or move into a sloping position

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.

A deviation from the perpendicular; an inclination

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

The lean part of meat

A person from East Asia, especially Vietnam.

(of a person or animal) thin, especially healthily so; having no superfluous fat

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

Offering little reward, substance, or nourishment; meagre

Move in an idle or aimless manner

(of a vaporized fuel mixture) having a high proportion of air

To diverge from the vertical or horizontal; incline

To bend or slant away from the vertical.

To move or walk

To incline the weight of the body so as to be supported

To cause to slope

To rely for assistance or support

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

To have a tendency or preference

A stretch of ground forming a natural or artificial incline

(Informal) To exert pressure

A deviation from the horizontal.

To set or place so as to be resting or supported

The amount or degree of such deviation.

To cause to incline

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.

A tilt or an inclination away from the vertical.

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

Meat with little or no fat.

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

Not fleshy or fat; thin.

An area of ground that tends evenly upward or downward.

Containing little fat or less fat relative to a standard

The degree to which a surface tends upward or downward.

Not productive or prosperous; meager

(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.

Containing little excess or waste; spare

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

Thrifty in management, especially by employing just enough people to accomplish a task or do business

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).

(Metallurgy) Low in mineral contents

A person of Chinese or other East Asian descent.

(Chemistry) Lacking in combustible material

(intransitive) To tend steadily upward or downward.

To incline, deviate, or bend, from a vertical position; to be in a position thus inclining or deviating.

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

(copulative) To incline in opinion or desire; to conform in conduct; often with to, toward, etc.

To try to move surreptitiously.

Followed by against, on, or upon: to rest or rely, for support, comfort, etc.

(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.

To hang outwards.

(obsolete) Sloping.

To press against.

(obsolete) slopingly

To thin out (a fuel-air mixture): to reduce the fuel flow into the mixture so that there is more air or oxygen.

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.

To conceal.

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

(of an object taller than its width and depth) An inclination away from the vertical.

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

(uncountable) Meat with no fat on it.

Sloping.

An organism that is lean in stature.

In a sloping manner.

A recreational drug based on codeine-laced promethazine cough syrup, especially popular in the hip hop community in the southeastern United States.

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.

(of a person or animal) Slim; not fleshy.

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

(of meat) Having little fat.

To depart; to disappear suddenly.

Having little extra or little to spare; scanty; meagre.

An elevated geological formation;

Having a low proportion or concentration of a desired substance or ingredient.

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

Of a character which prevents the compositor from earning the usual wages; opposed to fat.

Be at an angle;

(business) Efficient, economic, frugal, agile, slimmed-down; pertaining to the modern industrial principles of "lean manufacturing".

To conceal.

To incline, deviate, or bend, from a vertical position; to be in a position thus inclining or deviating; as, she leaned out at the window; a leaning column.

To incline in opinion or desire; to conform in conduct; - with to, toward, etc.

To rest or rely, for support, comfort, and the like; - with on, upon, or against.

To cause to lean; to incline; to support or rest.

Wanting flesh; destitute of or deficient in fat; slim; not plump; slender; meager; thin; lank; as, a lean body; a lean cattle.

Wanting fullness, richness, sufficiency, or productiveness; deficient in quality or contents; slender; scant; barren; bare; mean; - used literally and figuratively; as, the lean harvest; a lean purse; a lean discourse; lean wages.

Of a character which prevents the compositor from earning the usual wages; - opposed to fat; as, lean copy, matter, or type.

That part of flesh which consists principally of muscle without the fat.

Unremunerative copy or work.

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

To incline or bend from a vertical position;

Cause to lean or incline;

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

Rely on for support;

Cause to lean to the side;

Lacking excess flesh;

Lacking in mineral content or combustible material;

Containing little excess;

Low in mineral content;

Not profitable or prosperous;

Yes, lean is used in technical contexts such as machinery alignment and dynamics in physical activities.

Slope is integral in physics and mathematics to describe rates of change and gradients in equations.

Slope is critical in geography for describing landforms such as hills and mountains and their steepness.

Yes, lean can also imply a tendency or slight bias in preferences or opinions.

Yes, athletes often lean to maintain balance or enhance performance, like in skiing or motorcycle racing.

In engineering, understanding the slope is crucial for constructing roads, buildings, and managing water flow.

Yes, in economics, slope can represent the rate of change in cost, production, or other financial graphs.

Lean can be seen in expressions and idioms, indicating a subtle shift or preference, like "lean on" for support.

Yes, leaning on something can imply using it for physical support or stability.

Lean is often used to describe the act of inclining slightly, usually to maintain balance or stability.

Lean implies minor adjustments and subtlety, whereas slope can lead to major changes in how entities move or are perceived.

Slope affects erosion, habitat distribution, and water drainage in environmental systems.

Slope is often used to describe any inclined surface people encounter, such as in driveways or paths.

Both concepts are important in safety: lean in ensuring stability and balance, slope in understanding environmental and structural risks.

Lean generally refers to a slight tilt, often temporary or adjustable, while slope refers to a permanent or inherent incline of a surface.