If you describe a statement as oblique, you mean that is not expressed directly or openly, making it difficult to understand.
It was an oblique reference to his mother.
Mr Golding delivered an oblique warning, talking of the danger of sudden action.
Synonyms: indirect, implied, roundabout, backhanded More Synonyms of oblique
obliquelyadverb [ADVERB with verb]
He obliquely referred to the U.S., Britain and Saudi Arabia.
Synonyms: indirectly, evasively, not in so many words, circuitously More Synonyms of oblique
2. adjective [usually ADJECTIVE noun]
An oblique line is a straight line that is not horizontal or vertical. An oblique angle is any angle other than a right angle.
It lies between the plain and the sea at an oblique angle to the coastline.
Synonyms: slanting, angled, sloped, sloping More Synonyms of oblique
obliquelyadverb [ADVERB after verb]
This muscle runs obliquely downwards inside the abdominal cavity.
Synonyms: indirectly, evasively, not in so many words, circuitously More Synonyms of oblique
Synonyms: at an angle, sideways, diagonally, sidelong More Synonyms of oblique
More Synonyms of oblique
oblique in British English
(əˈbliːk)
adjective
1.
at an angle; slanting; sloping
2. geometry
a.
(of lines, planes, etc) neither perpendicular nor parallel to one another or to another line, plane, etc
b.
not related to or containing a right angle
3.
indirect or evasive
4. grammar
denoting any case of nouns, pronouns, etc, other than the nominative and vocative
5. biology
having asymmetrical sides or planes
an oblique leaf
6.
(of a map projection) constituting a type of zenithal projection in which the plane of projection is tangential to the earth's surface at some point between the equator and the poles
noun
7.
something oblique, esp a line
8. another name for solidus (sense 1)
9. nautical
the act of changing course by less than 90°
10.
an aerial photograph taken at an oblique angle
verb(intransitive)
11.
to take or have an oblique direction
12.
(of a military formation) to move forward at an angle
Derived forms
obliquely (oˈbliquely)
adverb
obliqueness (oˈbliqueness)
noun
Word origin
C15: from Old French, from Latin oblīquus, of obscure origin
oblique in American English
(oʊˈblik; əˈblik; also, esp. in mil. use, oʊˈblaɪk)
adjective
1.
having a slanting position or direction; neither perpendicular nor horizontal; notlevel or upright; inclined
2.
not straight to the point; not straightforward; indirect
3.
evasive, disingenuous, underhanded, etc.
4.
indirectly aimed at or attained
oblique results
5. Anatomy
designating or of any of certain muscles obliquely placed and attached
6. Botany
having the sides unequal, as some leaves
7. Geometry
with its axis not perpendicular to its base
an oblique cone
8. Grammar
designating or of any case except the nominative and the vocative
noun
9.
an oblique angle, muscle, etc.
verb intransitiveWord forms: obˈliqued or obˈliquing
10.
to veer from the perpendicular; slant
adverb
11. Military
with a change of direction of approximately 45 degrees
Derived forms
obliquely (obˈliquely)
adverb
obliqueness (obˈliqueness)
noun
Word origin
ME oblike < L obliquus < ob- (see ob-) + liquis, awry < IE *leik-, var. of base *elei-, to bend > ell2
Examples of 'oblique' in a sentence
oblique
It was an oblique way of giving praise.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
Walks are oblique approaches to difficult destinations.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
Public relations is more oblique in its approach.
Erdmann, Robert & Jones, Meirion Fats, Nutrition and Health (1991)
These work the oblique muscles at the side of the waist.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
The hardships have been played down and there are only oblique references to the question of whether or not a ransom was paid.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
On its final page, one short sentence makes an oblique reference to the crisis ahead.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
So it's perhaps not surprising he traded the overtly political for a more oblique approach.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
But what you're now facing is more complex and requires a more oblique approach.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
Many an oblique line holds it all together, and some of its messages still hit home.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
One of the oblique ways of telling what a new place is like is to see what sort of books are in the junk shop.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
As you begin this week, you may still be hoping that you can find an oblique way of addressing complex issues with others.
Times, Sunday Times (2009)
Yet these do their job, along with the oblique references to the farm's isolation.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
She uses the archive as an oblique way of talking about serious issues: 'I see it as an unspoken sharing.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
A gem from the superb new box set covering the enigmatic Walker brother's less oblique years.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
Palace trees screen the boundary opposite the hotel and much of the Tudor buildings, which lie at a distance downstream at an oblique angle to the hotel.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
With a favourable tide, we took an oblique course across the bay, heading for the high island which we had passed just before making our first encampment.
Edward Beauclerk Maurice THE LAST OF THE GENTLEMEN ADVENTURERS: Coming of Age in the Arctic (2004)
Word lists with
oblique
grammatical
In other languages
oblique
British English: oblique ADJECTIVE
If you describe a statement as oblique, you mean that is not expressed directly or openly, making it difficult to understand.