[ ə'bli:k ]
■ adjective
1》 neither parallel nor at right angles; slanting.
2》 not explicit or direct: an ~ threat.
3》 Geometry (of a line, plane figure, or surface) inclined at other than a right angle.
↘(of an angle) acute or obtuse.
↘(of a cone, cylinder, etc.) with an axis not perpendicular to the plane of its base.
4》 Anatomy (especially of a muscle) neither parallel nor perpendicular to the long axis of a body or limb.
5》 Grammar denoting any case other than the nominative or vocative.
■ noun
1》 Brit. another term for slash (in sense 3).
2》 an ~ muscle.
Derivatives
~ly adverb
~ness noun
obliquity ə'blɪkwɪti noun
Origin
ME: from L. obliquus .