# slant

/ˈsɫænt/ (US) · /slˈɑːnt/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/slant
Updated: 2026-08-27

## Senses

### 1. a physical slope

noun · CEFR B2

a surface or line that is not level or straight; a slope.

For teachers: a physical incline or sloped surface that deviates from the horizontal or vertical.

- The roof has a steep slant to help the snow slide off easily.
- The architect designed the floor with a subtle slant toward the central drain to prevent water from pooling after cleaning.

### 2. a point of view

noun · CEFR B2

a particular way of looking at something or telling a story that might be biased.

For teachers: a subjective point of view or a specific bias in the presentation of information.

- The newspaper gave a political slant to the story about the new tax.
- Critics argued that the documentary had a clear ideological slant, omitting key facts that contradicted the director's personal thesis.

### 3. a slash mark

noun · CEFR C1 · Technical

the punctuation mark / used to separate words or numbers.

For teachers: a typographical symbol, also known as a slash, used to indicate alternatives or to separate components in a path or date.

- You need to put a slant between the day and the month in the date.
- The style guide requires a slant to be used when presenting phonological transcriptions to distinguish them from orthographic text.

### 4. a culture medium

noun · CEFR C2 · Technical

a tube of jelly used in science that has been cooled at an angle to create a larger surface.

For teachers: a growth medium in a test tube that has been solidified while the tube was tilted to provide a greater surface area for aerobic growth.

- The scientist inoculated the agar slant with the bacteria sample.
- The laboratory technician prepared several nutrient agar slants to ensure sufficient surface area for the cultivation of the fungal colonies.

### 5. to tilt

verb · CEFR B2

to lean or tilt in a particular direction.

For teachers: to lean, incline, or slope away from a direct line or level.

- The sunlight slants through the window in the late afternoon.
- As the sun began to set, the shadows started to slant across the valley, stretching toward the eastern ridges.

### 7. sloping

adjective · CEFR B2

describing something that is at an angle; not straight up or flat.

For teachers: positioned in a sloping or oblique direction.

- She wrote the address in slant handwriting that was hard to read.
- The geologist noted the slant rock formations, which indicated significant tectonic activity in the region's distant past.

### 8. offensive slur

noun · CEFR C2 · Vulgar · Slang

a very rude and offensive word for a person from East Asia.

For teachers: a highly offensive and derogatory ethnic slur directed at individuals of East Asian descent.

- The movie was criticized for using a cruel slant to describe the character.
- The use of the term 'slant' in the historical document highlights the pervasive xenophobia of that particular era.

Usage: This term is considered a racial slur and is extremely offensive.

Teaching tip: Learners should be aware of this word only to recognize its offensive nature; it should never be used in polite or professional conversation.

## Examples

- The newspaper article had a clear political slant.
- The editor asked for a fresh slant on the story to make it more appealing to younger readers.
- While the data itself was accurate, the author's ideological slant influenced which statistics were highlighted and which were relegated to the appendices.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.