Syn. -- To lean; slope; slant; tend; bend.
In*cline", v. t. 1. To cause to deviate from a line, position, or
direction; to give a leaning, bend, or slope to; as, incline the column
or post to the east; incline your head to the right.
Incline thine ear, O Lord, and hear.
Is. xxxvii. 17.
2. To impart a tendency or propensity to, as to the will or affections;
to turn; to dispose; to influence.
Incline my heart unto thy testimonies.
Ps. cxix. 36.
Incline our hearts to keep this law.
Book of Com. Prayer.
3. To bend; to cause to stoop or bow; as, to incline the head or the
body in acts of reverence or civility.
With due respect my body I inclined.
Dryden.
In*cline", n. An inclined plane; an ascent or descent; a grade or
gradient; a slope.
In*clined" (?), p. p. & a. 1. Having a leaning or tendency towards, or
away from, a thing; disposed or moved by wish, desire, or judgment; as,
a man inclined to virtue. "Each pensively inclined." Cowper.
2. (Math.) Making an angle with some line or plane; -- said of a line
or plane.
3. (Bot.) Bent out of a perpendicular position, or into a curve with
the convex side uppermost.
Inclined plane. (Mech.) (a) A plane that makes an oblique angle with
the plane of the horizon; a sloping plane. When used to produce
pressure, or as a means of moving bodies, it is one of the mechanical
powers, so called. (b) (Railroad & Canal) An inclined portion of track,
on which trains or boats are raised or lowered from one level to
another.
In*clin"er (?), n. One who, or that which, inclines; specifically, an
inclined dial.
In*clin"ing, a. (Bot.) Same as Inclined, 3.
In*clin"ing, n. 1. Inclination; disposition.
On the first inclining towards sleep.
Burke.