English
angle
see also: Angle
Pronunciation
  • enPR: ăng'gəl, IPA: /ˈæŋ.ɡəl/
Etymology 1

From Middle English angle, angul, angule, borrowed from Middle French angle, from Latin angulus.

Noun

angle (plural angles)

  1. (geometry) A figure formed by two rays which start from a common point (a plane angle) or by three planes that intersect (a solid angle).
    the angle between lines A and B
  2. (geometry) The measure of such a figure. In the case of a plane angle, this is the ratio (or proportional to the ratio) of the arc length to the radius of a section of a circle cut by the two rays, centered at their common point. In the case of a solid angle, this is the ratio of the surface area to the square of the radius of the section of a sphere.
    The angle between lines A and B is π/4 radians, or 45 degrees.
  3. A corner where two walls intersect.
    an angle of a building
  4. A change in direction.
    The horse took off at an angle.
  5. A viewpoint; a way of looking at something.
    • 2005, Adams Media, Adams Job Interview Almanac, page 299:
      For example, if I was trying to repitch an idea to a producer who had already turned it down, I would say something like, "I remember you said you didn't like my idea because there was no women's angle. Well, here's a great one that both of us must have missed during our first conversation."
  6. (media) The focus of a news story.
  7. Any of various hesperiid butterflies.
  8. (slang, professional wrestling) A storyline between two wrestlers, providing the background for and approach to a feud.
  9. (slang) An ulterior motive; a scheme or means of benefitting from a situation, usually hidden, often immoral
    His angle is that he gets a percentage, but mostly in trade.
  10. A projecting or sharp corner; an angular fragment.
    • 1717, John Dryden [et al.], “(please specify |book=I to XV)”, in Ovid's Metamorphoses in Fifteen Books. […], London: […] Jacob Tonson, […], →OCLC ↗:
      though but an angle reached him of the stone
  11. (astrology) Any of the four cardinal points of an astrological chart: the Ascendant, the Midheaven, the Descendant and the Imum Coeli.
Synonyms Related terms Translations Translations Translations Translations Etymology 2

From Middle English anglen, from the noun (see above).

Verb

angle (angles, present participle angling; simple past and past participle angled)

  1. (transitive, often in the passive) To place (something) at an angle.
    The roof is angled at 15 degrees.
  2. (intransitive, informal) To change direction rapidly.
    The five ball angled off the nine ball but failed to reach the pocket.
  3. (transitive, informal) To present or argue something in a particular way or from a particular viewpoint.
    How do you want to angle this when we talk to the client?
  4. (transitive, cue sports) To hamper (oneself or one's opponent) by leaving the cue ball in the jaws of a pocket such that the surround of the pocket (the "angle") blocks the path from cue ball to object ball.
Etymology 3

From Middle English angel, from Old English angel, from Proto-West Germanic *angul, from Proto-Germanic *angulaz, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂enk-.

Noun

angle (plural angles)

  1. A fishhook; tackle for catching fish, consisting of a line, hook, and bait, with or without a rod.
    • c. 1606–1607 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Anthonie and Cleopatra”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC ↗, [Act II, scene v]:
      Give me mine angle: we'll to the river there.
    • 1717, Alexander Pope, Vertuminus and Pomona:
      A fisher next his trembling angle bears.
Etymology 4

From Middle English anglen, perhaps from Old English *anglian, from Proto-West Germanic *anglōn.

Verb

angle (angles, present participle angling; simple past and past participle angled)

  1. (intransitive, figurative) To try to catch fish with a hook and line.
  2. (informal, with for) To attempt to subtly persuade someone to offer a desired thing.
    He must be angling for a pay rise.
Translations
Angle
Etymology

Borrowed from Latin Anglus, in turn borrowed from a Germanic - source (compare Old English Ængle/Engle ("Angle")).

Pronunciation
  • IPA: /ˈæŋ.ɡəl/
Noun

angle (plural angles)

  1. (historical) A member of a Germanic tribe first mentioned by Tacitus, one of several which invaded Britain and merged to become the Anglo-Saxons; an Anglian.
Translations

This text is extracted from the Wiktionary and it is available under the CC BY-SA 3.0 license | Terms and conditions | Privacy policy 0.004
Offline English dictionary