curve

[ kurv ]

/ kɜrv /

noun

a continuously bending line, without angles.

the act or extent of curving.

any curved outline, form, thing, or part.

a curved section of a road, path, hallway, etc.

Railroads. a curved section of track: in the U.S. the curve is often expressed as the central angle, measured in degrees, of a curved section of track subtended by a chord 100 feet (30 meters) long (degree of curve).

Also called curve ball, curveball. Baseball.

a pitch delivered with a spin that causes the ball to veer from a normal straight path, away from the side from which it was thrown.
the course of such a pitched ball.

a graphic representation of the variations effected in something by the influence of changing conditions; graph.

Mathematics. a collection of points whose coordinates are continuous functions of a single independent variable.

a misleading or deceptive trick; cheat; deception.

Education. a grading system based on the scale of performance of a group, so that those performing better, regardless of their actual knowledge of the subject, receive high grades: The new English professor marks on a curve. Compare absolute(def 10).

a curved guide used in drafting.

verb (used with object), curved, curv·ing.

to bend in a curve; cause to take the course of a curve.

to grade on a curve.

Baseball. to pitch a curve to.

verb (used without object), curved, curv·ing.

to bend in a curve; take the course of a curve.

adjective

having the shape of a curve; curved.

Idioms for curve

ahead of/behindthe curve, at the forefront of (or lagging behind) recent developments, trends, etc.

throw (someone) a curve,

to take (someone) by surprise, especially in a negative way.
to mislead or deceive.

Origin of curve

1565–75; (< Middle French) < Latin curvus crooked, bent, curved

OTHER WORDS FROM curve

curv·ed·ly

[kur-vid-lee] /ˈkɜr vɪd li/, adverb curv·ed·ness, noun curve·less, adjective un·curved, adjective

un·curv·ing, adjective un·der·curve, noun un·der·curve, verb (used without object), un·der·curved, un·der·curv·ing. well-curved, adjective

Words nearby curve

curvature aberration, curvature hyperopia, curvature myopia, curvature of field, curvature of space, curve, curve ball, curve fitting, curve of occlusion, curvet, curvette

British Dictionary definitions for throw a curve

curve

/ (kɜːv) /

noun

a continuously bending line that has no straight parts

something that curves or is curved, such as a bend in a road or the contour of a woman's body

the act or extent of curving; curvature

maths

a system of points whose coordinates satisfy a given equation; a locus of points
the graph of a function with one independent variable

a line representing data, esp statistical data, on a graph an unemployment curve

ahead of the curve ahead of the times; ahead of schedule

behind the curve behind the times; behind schedule

short for French curve

verb

to take or cause to take the shape or path of a curve; bend

Other words from curve

Related adjective: sinuous

Derived forms of curve

curvedly (ˈkɜːvɪdlɪ), adverb curvedness, noun curvy, adjective

Word Origin for curve

C15: from Latin curvāre to bend, from curvus crooked

Medical definitions for throw a curve

curve

[ kûrv ]

n.

A line or surface that deviates from straightness in a smooth, continuous fashion.

Something characterized by such a line or surface, especially a rounded line or contour of the human body.

A curved line representing variations in data on a graph.

v.

To move in or take the shape of a curve.

Scientific definitions for throw a curve

curve

[ kûrv ]

A line or surface that bends in a smooth, continuous way without sharp angles.

The graph of a function on a coordinate plane. In this technical sense, straight lines, circles, and waves are all curves.

Idioms and Phrases with throw a curve (1 of 2)

throw a curve

Surprise or outwit someone, as in They threw me a curve when they said that our department would be combined with yours. This colloquial term comes from baseball, where a pitcher tries to fool the batter by using a curve ball, which is thrown with sufficient spin to make it veer from its expected path. The term was transferred to other kinds of surprise, not necessarily unpleasant, in the mid-1900s.

Idioms and Phrases with throw a curve (2 of 2)

curve

see throw a curve.

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

curve

noun

verb (used with object), curved, curv·ing.

verb (used without object), curved, curv·ing.

adjective

Idioms for curve

Origin of curve

OTHER WORDS FROM curve

Words nearby curve

British Dictionary definitions for throw a curve

noun

verb

Other words from curve

Derived forms of curve

Word Origin for curve

Medical definitions for throw a curve

n.

v.

Scientific definitions for throw a curve

Idioms and Phrases with throw a curve (1 of 2)

Idioms and Phrases with throw a curve (2 of 2)

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

curve

noun

verb (used with object), curved, curv·ing.

verb (used without object), curved, curv·ing.

adjective

Idioms for curve

Origin of curve

OTHER WORDS FROM curve

Words nearby curve

Words related to throw a curve

(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []) .push({}); British Dictionary definitions for throw a curve

noun

verb

Other words from curve

Derived forms of curve

Word Origin for curve

Medical definitions for throw a curve

n.

v.

Scientific definitions for throw a curve

Idioms and Phrases with throw a curve (1 of 2)

Idioms and Phrases with throw a curve (2 of 2)

British Dictionary definitions for throw a curve