Definition of curve in English:

curve

noun kəːvkərv

1A line or outline which gradually deviates from being straight for some or all of its length.
the parapet wall sweeps down in a bold curve
Example sentencesExamples
- His tight black muscle shirt hugged his chest, outlining his every curve.
- Many famous mathematicians, including Descartes, have worked on a class of curves called cycloids.
- Most tend to begin by either drawing gentle curves or straight lines on the daisyphone, creating rising or falling note progressions or a stark-sounding chords respectively.
- Light from the street lamps would wrap around the compact space, following the natural curves.
- Using some fairly sophisticated mathematics, you can program the computer to pick out in that array things like straight lines and nicely shaped curves.
- He trailed his mouth to the curve of her neck, softly kissing her.
- The straight line must be one of the earliest curves studied, but Euclid in his Elementsalthough he devotes much study to the straight line, does not consider it a curve.
- Judging the paintings, he said that straight lines, curves and equilateral triangles, involved in the drawing, could shape the children's handwriting.
- The ruler has a fixed distance marked on it and one mark is kept on a given line while the other traces the conchoid curve.
- With finite sample sizes, the curves deviate from this straight line and the deviation increases as the sample size decreases.
- In formal terms, the imagery plays with and against the shape of the tiles; curves contend with straight lines and figures are skewed or framed quite tightly.
- When the process was repeated over the remainder of the wall safe area, a strange outline of several concentric curves appeared.
- We can never fit a straight tangent line to the curve at the point.
- Winding stone walkways, designed to mimic the natural curves and stratification sculpted by wind and water, gradually ascend eight levels to the street.
- Little manipulation is required within the heart because the wire follows a natural curve.
- Ultimately, for an infinite number of sides (in effect, a circle), the curve becomes a straight, horizontal line.
- He was outlining a curve in black ink with a quill pen when someone knocked on the door.
- And the length of the curve is again a discontinuous function of the starting point.
- She smiles, a soft, trembling upward curve of mouth, " Not really.
- To his greatest regret later in life, he never published an account of the method that allowed the computation of areas, lengths of curves, tangents, and maxima and minima of functions.
Synonyms
bend, bow, arch
1. 1.1North American A place where a road deviates from a straight path.
  the vehicle rounded a curve
  Example sentencesExamples
  The way Keaira took the curves of this road Kat could tell Keaira had been riding for a few years.
  Figure 5 provides an illustration of the corner tracking-error issue when negotiating a curve in a road.
  ‘He won't be able to,’ I said, watching as a sharp curve in the road grew closer and closer.
  And he pushes the car past ninety, flying around the curves in the road.
  His crisp white Greek Revival house still stands at a curve in the main road, momentarily blocking the bay view as you drive past.
  Even the most macho of male drivers do not want to sweat it out driving or get a crick in the neck, manoeuvring hairpin curves on mountain roads.
  The mishap occurred approximately 150 yards from the member's home on a narrow dirt road with a blind curve.
  They were at one of the biggest, cruelest curves on the winding road.
  Don't stand immediately after a curve in the road, people won't see you until they're right on you.
  You don't go very far without a little hill or a curve in the road.
  The collision occurred when the driver lost control of the vehicle at a curve in the road while attempting to avoid the Federal Border Guard.
  Or position a mirror at a sharp curve in a road and you can suddenly see around the bend, catching a glimpse of something to come that otherwise would have been hidden.
  David's house was right around the curve in the road.
  So it's been a road with various curves and detours, not a straight, linear march towards a predetermined goal.
  Each turn around Pacific Cove's many winding curves revealed smaller roads and hairpin turns.
  Rounding the curve in the road Crow makes a turn and heads straight towards the finish line ribbon strung across the road.
  As we drove up the road with its hairpin curves to Mukkali, the air was dry and the surrounding hills looked desolate.
  It's a big cattle operation at a curve in the road.
  Out in the country, past the big cities, over four hills, and through countless curves on the road, lay the small town of Benwin.
  The Impala ripped down the road and took the curve quickly; the fog had vanished now, and the sky was clear now.
  Synonyms
  bend, turn, loop, curl, twist, hook
  arch, bow, half-moon
  corner, dog-leg, oxbow
  bulge, swell, curvature, camber
  undulation, meander
  British hairpin bend, hairpin turn
  technical flexure, trajectory, inflection
  rare incurvation
2. 1.2curves A curving contour of a woman's figure.
  her dress twisted tightly round her generous curves
  Example sentencesExamples
  For now, you could throw a T-shirt over your bikini, shop for a swimsuit that downplays your curves or figure out where you could enjoy a girls-only swim.
  Slim figure, nice curves, the girl was a walking boy magnet!
  The magazine even dared to say the poncho was suitable for all body shapes, flattering curves and disguising hefty hips.
  There was a grace and an elegance she carried with her, and it went further than the sleek curves of her figure.
  The waist was fit to show her curves and the perfect figure of her body.
  Her stick figure turned into voluptuous curves.
  All of the curves and contours of her torso seemed to fit right into mine.
  Her perfect voluptuous figure with the right curves in the right places were accentuated by the tight black leather pants and top she was wearing.
  Her figure had curves in all the right places, her face was the kind that poets would write endless sonnets about, and her hair just seemed to ask him to run his fingers through it.
  She stood tall, unlike Winnie, she was 5'8, with a nice slender figure, with womanly curves.
  The dress hugged her body tightly but gently; bringing out her full curves and luscious figure.
  Her figure curves gracefully from head to toe as she stands there, the only one left clapping.
  The assymetric-cut skirt, single shoulder dress decorated with soft pleats and belts outlines the beautiful curve of women.
  Terence noticed the redheaded woman walking towards him, bright green eyes and a figure full of curves.
  She wore a rose-dyed sacking dress, exquisitely worked under the needle so that it graced her slight figure, presented the curves as clues.
  She noted her slim figure, slight curves suggested womanhood.
  Her body with its generous curves still followed its own limpid rhythms and her long braid with its colourful Patiala parandis moved slowly to and fro upon that impregnable behind.
  Her figures now show off curves as well as angles, and include touches of Impressionism as they pose, row boats and toddle babies across sandy beaches.
  She was dripping with water, the tunic outlining the high curve of her young chest, her hair falling heavily in her back, a large pool of water growing around her.
  The fabric of her clothes whirled about her figure stretching against her curves.
  Synonyms
  outline, contour, contours, profile, delineation, form, shape, figure, shadow, features, lines, curves, configuration
3. 1.3 A line on a graph (whether straight or curved) showing how one quantity varies with respect to another.
  the population curve
  Example sentencesExamples
  Most of us lie between two extreme ends of a bell-shaped curve of sleep length and efficiency.
  Each eigenfunction represents a family of deformations in the shape of the average curve for the population.
  Given that quantity best response curves slope downward, when firm 2's sales fall in country 1, firm 1 expands its output.
  As we saw earlier, x-axis is the pedal curve of the parabola with respect to its focus.
  The curve forms from a graph plotting return and risk indicated by volatility, which is represented by standard deviation.
  A simple model, where the curve varies with fruits, was compared with a complex model, where the curve varies with genotypes and fruits.
  We constructed population growth curves for the numbers of different genes / ORFs found in the tag location database.
  From the fact that Newton uses the letter v for the ordinate, it may be inferred that Newton is thinking of the curve as being a graph of velocity against time.
  If the slope of the curve does not vary as C increases, the character is isogonic; if it varies, this means that the growth-rate of the abdomen varies.
  Recruitment curves for beetle populations on each soybean genotype were plotted by fitting a Ricker model to the data using likelihood methods.
  The major portion of the population curves and all population peaks occurred in soybean stage R5 to beginning R6.
  The curve divides the population according to their adoption of new technologies.
  The graphs are likelihood curves of population growth rate when the population size estimate is at its maximum-likelihood value.
  This measures the difference between the areas under the curve of a graph of actual distribution of cumulative income and one indicating equality of income distribution.
  The substantial shift of decay curves to lower frequency as a result of compound-DNA interactions is readily seen in Fig.4.
  From the individual dose - response curves we chose doses in the linear part for the combination treatments.
  The area below the curve with respect to the cross section gives an idea of the missing ballast.
  We used the data from the field experiment to estimate recruitment curves for beetle populations on each genotype.
  Data for I / V curves were acquired by varying the patch potential when the channels were open and examining the changes in the current amplitude.
  This situation leads to a blunter light-response curve, and lowers light use efficiency.
4. 1.4Baseball
  he relies on a couple of curves and a modest fastball
  another term for curveball
  Example sentencesExamples
  The tall right-hander took his sign, went into his windup, and threw the most hellacious curve I had ever seen.
  He throws a low 90s fastball and mixes it with a big-league curve.
  A midseason adjustment to throw the curve overhand helped his control.
  He understands changing speeds better than any other prospect, and mixes in an above-average curve.
  Finally, Ankiel struck Perez out on another curve.
  His fastball regularly hits 95 mph, and he throws a good slider and curve.
  Everts needed only eight pitches to retire the side, striking out one on a very impressive curve.

verb kəːvkərv

Form or cause to form a curve.
no object her mouth curved in a smile
with object starting with arms outstretched, curve the body sideways
Example sentencesExamples
- Their tail is carried over their backs either tightly or loosely curled or curved in an arch.
- This gave the Roman soldier a great deal of protection as it curved around his body.
- Each of the big spiraling arms was intended to be a megastructure, curving to a greenbelt.
- These were generally straight but also included forms that were curved or spiral or had lateral arms.
- Her lips a luscious red with her mouth curving into a small smile as she approached him.
- She rolled her eyes but I could still see a small smile curving at the corner of her lips.
- This good sense was reinforced when I saw the trail curving down the side of the mountain toward the city site.
- She seemed more amused as her perfectly plucked eyebrows raised, a small smile curving her mouth.
- Especially with the delightful back garden that Adrian designed with sweeps of gravel and curving footpaths.
- From the top, there were views south to Carlingford Lough and the sea, with the east coast of Ireland curving out of sight.
- Weights were then progressively added to the weighing boat which caused the petiole to bend, curving upwards.
- The seat was royal blue velvet, the edges studded with brass, the arms curving forwards laced with silver.
- Louis curved his arm around her shoulders and placed a kiss on her cheek.
- But the youngsters who zoom on their bikes curving along the hairpin bends have to take a day off.
- Cathery smiled at Kami, her eyes bright with colors, her mouth curving upwards.
- The common name comes from the way in which the body is curved back on itself.
- They flow like gusts of wind on a cool day, curving and twisting as they become yet another poem.
- When the chin is forward the front of the head becomes higher and the neck is curved in an exaggerated bend.
- Instead of merely curving down, the arms swoop down and around to hug the back of your head.
- The Seine snakes down to the bottom right before curving back up.
Synonyms
bend, turn, loop, wind, meander, undulate, snake, spiral, twist, coil, curl
arc, arch, bow
bulge, swell
technical inflect
rare incurve
bent, arched, bowed, crescent, curving, wavy, twisted, twisty, sinuous, serpentine, meandering, undulating, curvilinear, curvy
vaulted, rounded, concave, convex, domed, humped
hooked, aquiline
technical arcuate, falcate, falciform, circumflex, flexural
literary embowed
rare curviform

Phrases

ahead of (or behind) the curve

(especially of a business or politician) ahead of (or lagging behind) current thinking or trends.
we are continually looking for ways to stay ahead of the curve and provide added value to our consumers
Example sentencesExamples
- With technology trends changing rapidly, paying attention now will keep you ahead of the curve - and ahead of your competitors.
- Though I was behind the curve about blogging, I was ahead of the curve about email lists.
- It should come as no surprise, then, that politicians are scrambling to get ahead of the curve.
- And we're ahead of the curve as far as growth is concerned.
- Those trends have implications for professionals who want to stay ahead of the curve and ensure a successful future.
- Heroism, in hindsight, was cheap in that place in those days: Being just a couple of inches ahead of the curve would have done it.
- I think you're way ahead of the curve, but you still have a lot to catch up on.
- We can then begin to be ahead of the curve instead of behind it.
- Japan's population is ahead of the curve - the old age population is higher, and population growth is lower - than in the USA.
- When it comes to providing basic affordability, we might very well be ahead of the curve, but we're still barely pulling a passing grade.
- Their articles were once ahead of the curve spotting trends before they had a chance to be lampooned on South Park.
- This is a textbook example of being ahead of the curve.
- An increase in imports from overseas, and automation of the weaving processes, mean that Selectus has had to keep ahead of the curve to stay in business.
- Rackspace seems to be a bit ahead of the curve, but I expect that most companies will enable such pop-up chat services in the near-term.
- ‘I think normally we're behind, but this time we were slightly ahead of the curve,’ agrees Garrett.
- Predicting trends and staying ahead of the curve is essential for any savvy business owner.
- It was ahead of the curve about what the difficulties were.
- There are far-thinking businessmen who manage to see things new ways and think ahead of the curve, but they're always in the minority.
- Dent makes it his business to be ahead of the curve.
- Plenty of athletes are already ahead of the curve.

throw someone a curve

informal Unexpectedly present someone with a challenge or disruption.
just when you think you have this parenting thing down pat, they throw you a curve
Example sentencesExamples
- This being the third edition of "Endurance," Zhou probably should have known that the producers would throw the contestants a curve.
- Every once in a while life throws you a curve.
- Dean, who sells himself as the presidential campaign's straightest shooter, is starting to throw voters some curves.
- Little did I know that he was about to throw me a curve that would bring out skills I did not even know I had.
- Just when we got a bearing on a situation, the instructors would throw us another curve.
- Life will always throw you curves.
- There's nothing like some long-term epidemiological data to really throw a curve to the diet industry.
- "You've done everything that you can think of to ensure mission success, but Mars can still throw you a curve," said the former NASA Mars czar.

Origin

Late Middle English: from Latin curvare 'to bend', from curvus 'bent'. The noun dates from the late 17th century.

curb from Late Middle English:
A curb was a strap passing under the jaw of a horse and fastened to the bit, used for checking an unruly horse. This caused the horse to bend its neck, an action that produced the word. It derives from Old French courber ‘to bend or bow’, from Latin curvare, also the source of curve (Late Middle English). The idea of ‘holding back’ led to the more general sense of a check or restraint. Curb is also the American spelling of what in British English is a kerb (mid 17th century), a stone edging to a pavement or path. The original idea here was of a border or frame bending round something, for example, the top of a well or a trapdoor.

Rhymes

conserve, Deneuve, derv, hors d'oeuvre, nerve, observe, roman-fleuve, serve, subserve, swerve, verve

Definition of curve in US English:

curve

nounkərvkərv

1A line or outline which gradually deviates from being straight for some or all of its length.
the parapet wall sweeps down in a bold curve
Example sentencesExamples
- She smiles, a soft, trembling upward curve of mouth, " Not really.
- The straight line must be one of the earliest curves studied, but Euclid in his Elementsalthough he devotes much study to the straight line, does not consider it a curve.
- We can never fit a straight tangent line to the curve at the point.
- He was outlining a curve in black ink with a quill pen when someone knocked on the door.
- Ultimately, for an infinite number of sides (in effect, a circle), the curve becomes a straight, horizontal line.
- Light from the street lamps would wrap around the compact space, following the natural curves.
- Many famous mathematicians, including Descartes, have worked on a class of curves called cycloids.
- Judging the paintings, he said that straight lines, curves and equilateral triangles, involved in the drawing, could shape the children's handwriting.
- When the process was repeated over the remainder of the wall safe area, a strange outline of several concentric curves appeared.
- Winding stone walkways, designed to mimic the natural curves and stratification sculpted by wind and water, gradually ascend eight levels to the street.
- His tight black muscle shirt hugged his chest, outlining his every curve.
- Most tend to begin by either drawing gentle curves or straight lines on the daisyphone, creating rising or falling note progressions or a stark-sounding chords respectively.
- And the length of the curve is again a discontinuous function of the starting point.
- Little manipulation is required within the heart because the wire follows a natural curve.
- In formal terms, the imagery plays with and against the shape of the tiles; curves contend with straight lines and figures are skewed or framed quite tightly.
- He trailed his mouth to the curve of her neck, softly kissing her.
- To his greatest regret later in life, he never published an account of the method that allowed the computation of areas, lengths of curves, tangents, and maxima and minima of functions.
- Using some fairly sophisticated mathematics, you can program the computer to pick out in that array things like straight lines and nicely shaped curves.
- With finite sample sizes, the curves deviate from this straight line and the deviation increases as the sample size decreases.
- The ruler has a fixed distance marked on it and one mark is kept on a given line while the other traces the conchoid curve.
Synonyms
bend, bow, arch
1. 1.1North American A place where a road deviates from a straight path.
  the vehicle rounded a curve
  Example sentencesExamples
  Don't stand immediately after a curve in the road, people won't see you until they're right on you.
  It's a big cattle operation at a curve in the road.
  The collision occurred when the driver lost control of the vehicle at a curve in the road while attempting to avoid the Federal Border Guard.
  As we drove up the road with its hairpin curves to Mukkali, the air was dry and the surrounding hills looked desolate.
  Out in the country, past the big cities, over four hills, and through countless curves on the road, lay the small town of Benwin.
  ‘He won't be able to,’ I said, watching as a sharp curve in the road grew closer and closer.
  So it's been a road with various curves and detours, not a straight, linear march towards a predetermined goal.
  Or position a mirror at a sharp curve in a road and you can suddenly see around the bend, catching a glimpse of something to come that otherwise would have been hidden.
  You don't go very far without a little hill or a curve in the road.
  His crisp white Greek Revival house still stands at a curve in the main road, momentarily blocking the bay view as you drive past.
  David's house was right around the curve in the road.
  They were at one of the biggest, cruelest curves on the winding road.
  The Impala ripped down the road and took the curve quickly; the fog had vanished now, and the sky was clear now.
  Each turn around Pacific Cove's many winding curves revealed smaller roads and hairpin turns.
  The way Keaira took the curves of this road Kat could tell Keaira had been riding for a few years.
  Even the most macho of male drivers do not want to sweat it out driving or get a crick in the neck, manoeuvring hairpin curves on mountain roads.
  Figure 5 provides an illustration of the corner tracking-error issue when negotiating a curve in a road.
  And he pushes the car past ninety, flying around the curves in the road.
  The mishap occurred approximately 150 yards from the member's home on a narrow dirt road with a blind curve.
  Rounding the curve in the road Crow makes a turn and heads straight towards the finish line ribbon strung across the road.
  Synonyms
  bend, turn, loop, curl, twist, hook
2. 1.2curves A curving contour of a woman's figure.
  Example sentencesExamples
  There was a grace and an elegance she carried with her, and it went further than the sleek curves of her figure.
  The assymetric-cut skirt, single shoulder dress decorated with soft pleats and belts outlines the beautiful curve of women.
  Her stick figure turned into voluptuous curves.
  Her figure had curves in all the right places, her face was the kind that poets would write endless sonnets about, and her hair just seemed to ask him to run his fingers through it.
  For now, you could throw a T-shirt over your bikini, shop for a swimsuit that downplays your curves or figure out where you could enjoy a girls-only swim.
  Slim figure, nice curves, the girl was a walking boy magnet!
  All of the curves and contours of her torso seemed to fit right into mine.
  Her perfect voluptuous figure with the right curves in the right places were accentuated by the tight black leather pants and top she was wearing.
  Her figure curves gracefully from head to toe as she stands there, the only one left clapping.
  The dress hugged her body tightly but gently; bringing out her full curves and luscious figure.
  The magazine even dared to say the poncho was suitable for all body shapes, flattering curves and disguising hefty hips.
  Her figures now show off curves as well as angles, and include touches of Impressionism as they pose, row boats and toddle babies across sandy beaches.
  She noted her slim figure, slight curves suggested womanhood.
  Terence noticed the redheaded woman walking towards him, bright green eyes and a figure full of curves.
  She was dripping with water, the tunic outlining the high curve of her young chest, her hair falling heavily in her back, a large pool of water growing around her.
  The fabric of her clothes whirled about her figure stretching against her curves.
  Her body with its generous curves still followed its own limpid rhythms and her long braid with its colourful Patiala parandis moved slowly to and fro upon that impregnable behind.
  She stood tall, unlike Winnie, she was 5'8, with a nice slender figure, with womanly curves.
  The waist was fit to show her curves and the perfect figure of her body.
  She wore a rose-dyed sacking dress, exquisitely worked under the needle so that it graced her slight figure, presented the curves as clues.
  Synonyms
  outline, contour, contours, profile, delineation, form, shape, figure, shadow, features, lines, curves, configuration
3. 1.3 A line on a graph (whether straight or curved) showing how one quantity varies with respect to another.
  the population curve
  Example sentencesExamples
  The area below the curve with respect to the cross section gives an idea of the missing ballast.
  A simple model, where the curve varies with fruits, was compared with a complex model, where the curve varies with genotypes and fruits.
  This situation leads to a blunter light-response curve, and lowers light use efficiency.
  Recruitment curves for beetle populations on each soybean genotype were plotted by fitting a Ricker model to the data using likelihood methods.
  Data for I / V curves were acquired by varying the patch potential when the channels were open and examining the changes in the current amplitude.
  As we saw earlier, x-axis is the pedal curve of the parabola with respect to its focus.
  The substantial shift of decay curves to lower frequency as a result of compound-DNA interactions is readily seen in Fig.4.
  If the slope of the curve does not vary as C increases, the character is isogonic; if it varies, this means that the growth-rate of the abdomen varies.
  We constructed population growth curves for the numbers of different genes / ORFs found in the tag location database.
  Each eigenfunction represents a family of deformations in the shape of the average curve for the population.
  From the fact that Newton uses the letter v for the ordinate, it may be inferred that Newton is thinking of the curve as being a graph of velocity against time.
  This measures the difference between the areas under the curve of a graph of actual distribution of cumulative income and one indicating equality of income distribution.
  Given that quantity best response curves slope downward, when firm 2's sales fall in country 1, firm 1 expands its output.
  The curve divides the population according to their adoption of new technologies.
  Most of us lie between two extreme ends of a bell-shaped curve of sleep length and efficiency.
  We used the data from the field experiment to estimate recruitment curves for beetle populations on each genotype.
  From the individual dose - response curves we chose doses in the linear part for the combination treatments.
  The curve forms from a graph plotting return and risk indicated by volatility, which is represented by standard deviation.
  The graphs are likelihood curves of population growth rate when the population size estimate is at its maximum-likelihood value.
  The major portion of the population curves and all population peaks occurred in soybean stage R5 to beginning R6.
4. 1.4 A system in which grades are assigned to students based on their performance relative to other students, regardless of their actual knowledge of the subject.
  grades were marked on a curve
  Example sentencesExamples
  But I'm grading on today's curve, and in that context, they're both 8s.
  A measurement of compliance, like a school exam, can either be based on an absolute scale or reflect a curve of relative performance.
  Designing assessments to spread student scores permits the use of the normal curve to assign grades.
  But as it goes back to - I don't believe God grades on a curve.
  Well, he didn't like me so much as he hated everyone else and graded on a curve.
  There are few ways to combat this risk, one of which is grading on a curve.
  Some teachers grade on a curve, creating a ranking system and failing the bottommost students.
  The cities were then ranked first to last and assigned numerical grades based on a relative curve.
  And this ties in to some of the reasons why grading on a curve is the lesser of evils.
  When I was playing music, I found that there was a general practice of grading on a curve with respect to local music.
  Grading on a curve would take on a whole new meaning.
5. 1.5Baseball
  another term for curveball
  Example sentencesExamples
  A midseason adjustment to throw the curve overhand helped his control.
  The tall right-hander took his sign, went into his windup, and threw the most hellacious curve I had ever seen.
  He understands changing speeds better than any other prospect, and mixes in an above-average curve.
  He throws a low 90s fastball and mixes it with a big-league curve.
  Finally, Ankiel struck Perez out on another curve.
  His fastball regularly hits 95 mph, and he throws a good slider and curve.
  Everts needed only eight pitches to retire the side, striking out one on a very impressive curve.

verbkərvkərv

Form or cause to form a curve.
no object her mouth curved in a smile
with object starting with arms outstretched, curve the body sideways
Example sentencesExamples
- Her lips a luscious red with her mouth curving into a small smile as she approached him.
- She seemed more amused as her perfectly plucked eyebrows raised, a small smile curving her mouth.
- They flow like gusts of wind on a cool day, curving and twisting as they become yet another poem.
- She rolled her eyes but I could still see a small smile curving at the corner of her lips.
- But the youngsters who zoom on their bikes curving along the hairpin bends have to take a day off.
- The Seine snakes down to the bottom right before curving back up.
- These were generally straight but also included forms that were curved or spiral or had lateral arms.
- Each of the big spiraling arms was intended to be a megastructure, curving to a greenbelt.
- From the top, there were views south to Carlingford Lough and the sea, with the east coast of Ireland curving out of sight.
- When the chin is forward the front of the head becomes higher and the neck is curved in an exaggerated bend.
- Instead of merely curving down, the arms swoop down and around to hug the back of your head.
- Their tail is carried over their backs either tightly or loosely curled or curved in an arch.
- Weights were then progressively added to the weighing boat which caused the petiole to bend, curving upwards.
- The seat was royal blue velvet, the edges studded with brass, the arms curving forwards laced with silver.
- This gave the Roman soldier a great deal of protection as it curved around his body.
- Especially with the delightful back garden that Adrian designed with sweeps of gravel and curving footpaths.
- This good sense was reinforced when I saw the trail curving down the side of the mountain toward the city site.
- Louis curved his arm around her shoulders and placed a kiss on her cheek.
- Cathery smiled at Kami, her eyes bright with colors, her mouth curving upwards.
- The common name comes from the way in which the body is curved back on itself.
Synonyms
bend, turn, loop, wind, meander, undulate, snake, spiral, twist, coil, curl
bent, arched, bowed, crescent, curving, wavy, twisted, twisty, sinuous, serpentine, meandering, undulating, curvilinear, curvy

Phrases

ahead of (or behind) the curve

(especially of a business or politician) ahead of (or lagging behind) current thinking or trends.
Example sentencesExamples
- It should come as no surprise, then, that politicians are scrambling to get ahead of the curve.
- I think you're way ahead of the curve, but you still have a lot to catch up on.
- Dent makes it his business to be ahead of the curve.
- Rackspace seems to be a bit ahead of the curve, but I expect that most companies will enable such pop-up chat services in the near-term.
- There are far-thinking businessmen who manage to see things new ways and think ahead of the curve, but they're always in the minority.
- Though I was behind the curve about blogging, I was ahead of the curve about email lists.
- When it comes to providing basic affordability, we might very well be ahead of the curve, but we're still barely pulling a passing grade.
- It was ahead of the curve about what the difficulties were.
- Japan's population is ahead of the curve - the old age population is higher, and population growth is lower - than in the USA.
- Predicting trends and staying ahead of the curve is essential for any savvy business owner.
- With technology trends changing rapidly, paying attention now will keep you ahead of the curve - and ahead of your competitors.
- Heroism, in hindsight, was cheap in that place in those days: Being just a couple of inches ahead of the curve would have done it.
- This is a textbook example of being ahead of the curve.
- Their articles were once ahead of the curve spotting trends before they had a chance to be lampooned on South Park.
- Plenty of athletes are already ahead of the curve.
- ‘I think normally we're behind, but this time we were slightly ahead of the curve,’ agrees Garrett.
- And we're ahead of the curve as far as growth is concerned.
- We can then begin to be ahead of the curve instead of behind it.
- An increase in imports from overseas, and automation of the weaving processes, mean that Selectus has had to keep ahead of the curve to stay in business.
- Those trends have implications for professionals who want to stay ahead of the curve and ensure a successful future.

throw someone a curve

informal Unexpectedly present someone with a challenge or disruption.
just when you think you have this parenting thing down pat, they throw you a curve
Example sentencesExamples
- "You've done everything that you can think of to ensure mission success, but Mars can still throw you a curve," said the former NASA Mars czar.
- Every once in a while life throws you a curve.
- Little did I know that he was about to throw me a curve that would bring out skills I did not even know I had.
- Life will always throw you curves.
- Dean, who sells himself as the presidential campaign's straightest shooter, is starting to throw voters some curves.
- Just when we got a bearing on a situation, the instructors would throw us another curve.
- This being the third edition of "Endurance," Zhou probably should have known that the producers would throw the contestants a curve.
- There's nothing like some long-term epidemiological data to really throw a curve to the diet industry.

Origin

Late Middle English: from Latin curvare ‘to bend’, from curvus ‘bent’. The noun dates from the late 17th century.

单词	curve
释义	Definition of curve in English: curve noun kəːvkərv 1A line or outline which gradually deviates from being straight for some or all of its length. the parapet wall sweeps down in a bold curve Example sentencesExamples His tight black muscle shirt hugged his chest, outlining his every curve. Many famous mathematicians, including Descartes, have worked on a class of curves called cycloids. Most tend to begin by either drawing gentle curves or straight lines on the daisyphone, creating rising or falling note progressions or a stark-sounding chords respectively. Light from the street lamps would wrap around the compact space, following the natural curves. Using some fairly sophisticated mathematics, you can program the computer to pick out in that array things like straight lines and nicely shaped curves. He trailed his mouth to the curve of her neck, softly kissing her. The straight line must be one of the earliest curves studied, but Euclid in his Elementsalthough he devotes much study to the straight line, does not consider it a curve. Judging the paintings, he said that straight lines, curves and equilateral triangles, involved in the drawing, could shape the children's handwriting. The ruler has a fixed distance marked on it and one mark is kept on a given line while the other traces the conchoid curve. With finite sample sizes, the curves deviate from this straight line and the deviation increases as the sample size decreases. In formal terms, the imagery plays with and against the shape of the tiles; curves contend with straight lines and figures are skewed or framed quite tightly. When the process was repeated over the remainder of the wall safe area, a strange outline of several concentric curves appeared. We can never fit a straight tangent line to the curve at the point. Winding stone walkways, designed to mimic the natural curves and stratification sculpted by wind and water, gradually ascend eight levels to the street. Little manipulation is required within the heart because the wire follows a natural curve. Ultimately, for an infinite number of sides (in effect, a circle), the curve becomes a straight, horizontal line. He was outlining a curve in black ink with a quill pen when someone knocked on the door. And the length of the curve is again a discontinuous function of the starting point. She smiles, a soft, trembling upward curve of mouth, " Not really. To his greatest regret later in life, he never published an account of the method that allowed the computation of areas, lengths of curves, tangents, and maxima and minima of functions. Synonyms bend, bow, arch 1.1North American A place where a road deviates from a straight path. the vehicle rounded a curve Example sentencesExamples The way Keaira took the curves of this road Kat could tell Keaira had been riding for a few years. Figure 5 provides an illustration of the corner tracking-error issue when negotiating a curve in a road. ‘He won't be able to,’ I said, watching as a sharp curve in the road grew closer and closer. And he pushes the car past ninety, flying around the curves in the road. His crisp white Greek Revival house still stands at a curve in the main road, momentarily blocking the bay view as you drive past. Even the most macho of male drivers do not want to sweat it out driving or get a crick in the neck, manoeuvring hairpin curves on mountain roads. The mishap occurred approximately 150 yards from the member's home on a narrow dirt road with a blind curve. They were at one of the biggest, cruelest curves on the winding road. Don't stand immediately after a curve in the road, people won't see you until they're right on you. You don't go very far without a little hill or a curve in the road. The collision occurred when the driver lost control of the vehicle at a curve in the road while attempting to avoid the Federal Border Guard. Or position a mirror at a sharp curve in a road and you can suddenly see around the bend, catching a glimpse of something to come that otherwise would have been hidden. David's house was right around the curve in the road. So it's been a road with various curves and detours, not a straight, linear march towards a predetermined goal. Each turn around Pacific Cove's many winding curves revealed smaller roads and hairpin turns. Rounding the curve in the road Crow makes a turn and heads straight towards the finish line ribbon strung across the road. As we drove up the road with its hairpin curves to Mukkali, the air was dry and the surrounding hills looked desolate. It's a big cattle operation at a curve in the road. Out in the country, past the big cities, over four hills, and through countless curves on the road, lay the small town of Benwin. The Impala ripped down the road and took the curve quickly; the fog had vanished now, and the sky was clear now. Synonyms bend, turn, loop, curl, twist, hook arch, bow, half-moon corner, dog-leg, oxbow bulge, swell, curvature, camber undulation, meander British hairpin bend, hairpin turn technical flexure, trajectory, inflection rare incurvation 1.2curves A curving contour of a woman's figure. her dress twisted tightly round her generous curves Example sentencesExamples For now, you could throw a T-shirt over your bikini, shop for a swimsuit that downplays your curves or figure out where you could enjoy a girls-only swim. Slim figure, nice curves, the girl was a walking boy magnet! The magazine even dared to say the poncho was suitable for all body shapes, flattering curves and disguising hefty hips. There was a grace and an elegance she carried with her, and it went further than the sleek curves of her figure. The waist was fit to show her curves and the perfect figure of her body. Her stick figure turned into voluptuous curves. All of the curves and contours of her torso seemed to fit right into mine. Her perfect voluptuous figure with the right curves in the right places were accentuated by the tight black leather pants and top she was wearing. Her figure had curves in all the right places, her face was the kind that poets would write endless sonnets about, and her hair just seemed to ask him to run his fingers through it. She stood tall, unlike Winnie, she was 5'8, with a nice slender figure, with womanly curves. The dress hugged her body tightly but gently; bringing out her full curves and luscious figure. Her figure curves gracefully from head to toe as she stands there, the only one left clapping. The assymetric-cut skirt, single shoulder dress decorated with soft pleats and belts outlines the beautiful curve of women. Terence noticed the redheaded woman walking towards him, bright green eyes and a figure full of curves. She wore a rose-dyed sacking dress, exquisitely worked under the needle so that it graced her slight figure, presented the curves as clues. She noted her slim figure, slight curves suggested womanhood. Her body with its generous curves still followed its own limpid rhythms and her long braid with its colourful Patiala parandis moved slowly to and fro upon that impregnable behind. Her figures now show off curves as well as angles, and include touches of Impressionism as they pose, row boats and toddle babies across sandy beaches. She was dripping with water, the tunic outlining the high curve of her young chest, her hair falling heavily in her back, a large pool of water growing around her. The fabric of her clothes whirled about her figure stretching against her curves. Synonyms outline, contour, contours, profile, delineation, form, shape, figure, shadow, features, lines, curves, configuration 1.3 A line on a graph (whether straight or curved) showing how one quantity varies with respect to another. the population curve Example sentencesExamples Most of us lie between two extreme ends of a bell-shaped curve of sleep length and efficiency. Each eigenfunction represents a family of deformations in the shape of the average curve for the population. Given that quantity best response curves slope downward, when firm 2's sales fall in country 1, firm 1 expands its output. As we saw earlier, x-axis is the pedal curve of the parabola with respect to its focus. The curve forms from a graph plotting return and risk indicated by volatility, which is represented by standard deviation. A simple model, where the curve varies with fruits, was compared with a complex model, where the curve varies with genotypes and fruits. We constructed population growth curves for the numbers of different genes / ORFs found in the tag location database. From the fact that Newton uses the letter v for the ordinate, it may be inferred that Newton is thinking of the curve as being a graph of velocity against time. If the slope of the curve does not vary as C increases, the character is isogonic; if it varies, this means that the growth-rate of the abdomen varies. Recruitment curves for beetle populations on each soybean genotype were plotted by fitting a Ricker model to the data using likelihood methods. The major portion of the population curves and all population peaks occurred in soybean stage R5 to beginning R6. The curve divides the population according to their adoption of new technologies. The graphs are likelihood curves of population growth rate when the population size estimate is at its maximum-likelihood value. This measures the difference between the areas under the curve of a graph of actual distribution of cumulative income and one indicating equality of income distribution. The substantial shift of decay curves to lower frequency as a result of compound-DNA interactions is readily seen in Fig.4. From the individual dose - response curves we chose doses in the linear part for the combination treatments. The area below the curve with respect to the cross section gives an idea of the missing ballast. We used the data from the field experiment to estimate recruitment curves for beetle populations on each genotype. Data for I / V curves were acquired by varying the patch potential when the channels were open and examining the changes in the current amplitude. This situation leads to a blunter light-response curve, and lowers light use efficiency. 1.4Baseball he relies on a couple of curves and a modest fastball another term for curveball Example sentencesExamples The tall right-hander took his sign, went into his windup, and threw the most hellacious curve I had ever seen. He throws a low 90s fastball and mixes it with a big-league curve. A midseason adjustment to throw the curve overhand helped his control. He understands changing speeds better than any other prospect, and mixes in an above-average curve. Finally, Ankiel struck Perez out on another curve. His fastball regularly hits 95 mph, and he throws a good slider and curve. Everts needed only eight pitches to retire the side, striking out one on a very impressive curve. verb kəːvkərv Form or cause to form a curve. no object her mouth curved in a smile with object starting with arms outstretched, curve the body sideways Example sentencesExamples Their tail is carried over their backs either tightly or loosely curled or curved in an arch. This gave the Roman soldier a great deal of protection as it curved around his body. Each of the big spiraling arms was intended to be a megastructure, curving to a greenbelt. These were generally straight but also included forms that were curved or spiral or had lateral arms. Her lips a luscious red with her mouth curving into a small smile as she approached him. She rolled her eyes but I could still see a small smile curving at the corner of her lips. This good sense was reinforced when I saw the trail curving down the side of the mountain toward the city site. She seemed more amused as her perfectly plucked eyebrows raised, a small smile curving her mouth. Especially with the delightful back garden that Adrian designed with sweeps of gravel and curving footpaths. From the top, there were views south to Carlingford Lough and the sea, with the east coast of Ireland curving out of sight. Weights were then progressively added to the weighing boat which caused the petiole to bend, curving upwards. The seat was royal blue velvet, the edges studded with brass, the arms curving forwards laced with silver. Louis curved his arm around her shoulders and placed a kiss on her cheek. But the youngsters who zoom on their bikes curving along the hairpin bends have to take a day off. Cathery smiled at Kami, her eyes bright with colors, her mouth curving upwards. The common name comes from the way in which the body is curved back on itself. They flow like gusts of wind on a cool day, curving and twisting as they become yet another poem. When the chin is forward the front of the head becomes higher and the neck is curved in an exaggerated bend. Instead of merely curving down, the arms swoop down and around to hug the back of your head. The Seine snakes down to the bottom right before curving back up. Synonyms bend, turn, loop, wind, meander, undulate, snake, spiral, twist, coil, curl arc, arch, bow bulge, swell technical inflect rare incurve bent, arched, bowed, crescent, curving, wavy, twisted, twisty, sinuous, serpentine, meandering, undulating, curvilinear, curvy vaulted, rounded, concave, convex, domed, humped hooked, aquiline technical arcuate, falcate, falciform, circumflex, flexural literary embowed rare curviform Phrases ahead of (or behind) the curve (especially of a business or politician) ahead of (or lagging behind) current thinking or trends. we are continually looking for ways to stay ahead of the curve and provide added value to our consumers Example sentencesExamples With technology trends changing rapidly, paying attention now will keep you ahead of the curve - and ahead of your competitors. Though I was behind the curve about blogging, I was ahead of the curve about email lists. It should come as no surprise, then, that politicians are scrambling to get ahead of the curve. And we're ahead of the curve as far as growth is concerned. Those trends have implications for professionals who want to stay ahead of the curve and ensure a successful future. Heroism, in hindsight, was cheap in that place in those days: Being just a couple of inches ahead of the curve would have done it. I think you're way ahead of the curve, but you still have a lot to catch up on. We can then begin to be ahead of the curve instead of behind it. Japan's population is ahead of the curve - the old age population is higher, and population growth is lower - than in the USA. When it comes to providing basic affordability, we might very well be ahead of the curve, but we're still barely pulling a passing grade. Their articles were once ahead of the curve spotting trends before they had a chance to be lampooned on South Park. This is a textbook example of being ahead of the curve. An increase in imports from overseas, and automation of the weaving processes, mean that Selectus has had to keep ahead of the curve to stay in business. Rackspace seems to be a bit ahead of the curve, but I expect that most companies will enable such pop-up chat services in the near-term. ‘I think normally we're behind, but this time we were slightly ahead of the curve,’ agrees Garrett. Predicting trends and staying ahead of the curve is essential for any savvy business owner. It was ahead of the curve about what the difficulties were. There are far-thinking businessmen who manage to see things new ways and think ahead of the curve, but they're always in the minority. Dent makes it his business to be ahead of the curve. Plenty of athletes are already ahead of the curve. throw someone a curve informal Unexpectedly present someone with a challenge or disruption. just when you think you have this parenting thing down pat, they throw you a curve Example sentencesExamples This being the third edition of "Endurance," Zhou probably should have known that the producers would throw the contestants a curve. Every once in a while life throws you a curve. Dean, who sells himself as the presidential campaign's straightest shooter, is starting to throw voters some curves. Little did I know that he was about to throw me a curve that would bring out skills I did not even know I had. Just when we got a bearing on a situation, the instructors would throw us another curve. Life will always throw you curves. There's nothing like some long-term epidemiological data to really throw a curve to the diet industry. "You've done everything that you can think of to ensure mission success, but Mars can still throw you a curve," said the former NASA Mars czar. Origin Late Middle English: from Latin curvare 'to bend', from curvus 'bent'. The noun dates from the late 17th century. curb from Late Middle English: A curb was a strap passing under the jaw of a horse and fastened to the bit, used for checking an unruly horse. This caused the horse to bend its neck, an action that produced the word. It derives from Old French courber ‘to bend or bow’, from Latin curvare, also the source of curve (Late Middle English). The idea of ‘holding back’ led to the more general sense of a check or restraint. Curb is also the American spelling of what in British English is a kerb (mid 17th century), a stone edging to a pavement or path. The original idea here was of a border or frame bending round something, for example, the top of a well or a trapdoor. Rhymes conserve, Deneuve, derv, hors d'oeuvre, nerve, observe, roman-fleuve, serve, subserve, swerve, verve noun.1 phr. Definition of curve in US English: curve nounkərvkərv 1A line or outline which gradually deviates from being straight for some or all of its length. the parapet wall sweeps down in a bold curve Example sentencesExamples She smiles, a soft, trembling upward curve of mouth, " Not really. The straight line must be one of the earliest curves studied, but Euclid in his Elementsalthough he devotes much study to the straight line, does not consider it a curve. We can never fit a straight tangent line to the curve at the point. He was outlining a curve in black ink with a quill pen when someone knocked on the door. Ultimately, for an infinite number of sides (in effect, a circle), the curve becomes a straight, horizontal line. Light from the street lamps would wrap around the compact space, following the natural curves. Many famous mathematicians, including Descartes, have worked on a class of curves called cycloids. Judging the paintings, he said that straight lines, curves and equilateral triangles, involved in the drawing, could shape the children's handwriting. When the process was repeated over the remainder of the wall safe area, a strange outline of several concentric curves appeared. Winding stone walkways, designed to mimic the natural curves and stratification sculpted by wind and water, gradually ascend eight levels to the street. His tight black muscle shirt hugged his chest, outlining his every curve. Most tend to begin by either drawing gentle curves or straight lines on the daisyphone, creating rising or falling note progressions or a stark-sounding chords respectively. And the length of the curve is again a discontinuous function of the starting point. Little manipulation is required within the heart because the wire follows a natural curve. In formal terms, the imagery plays with and against the shape of the tiles; curves contend with straight lines and figures are skewed or framed quite tightly. He trailed his mouth to the curve of her neck, softly kissing her. To his greatest regret later in life, he never published an account of the method that allowed the computation of areas, lengths of curves, tangents, and maxima and minima of functions. Using some fairly sophisticated mathematics, you can program the computer to pick out in that array things like straight lines and nicely shaped curves. With finite sample sizes, the curves deviate from this straight line and the deviation increases as the sample size decreases. The ruler has a fixed distance marked on it and one mark is kept on a given line while the other traces the conchoid curve. Synonyms bend, bow, arch 1.1North American A place where a road deviates from a straight path. the vehicle rounded a curve Example sentencesExamples Don't stand immediately after a curve in the road, people won't see you until they're right on you. It's a big cattle operation at a curve in the road. The collision occurred when the driver lost control of the vehicle at a curve in the road while attempting to avoid the Federal Border Guard. As we drove up the road with its hairpin curves to Mukkali, the air was dry and the surrounding hills looked desolate. Out in the country, past the big cities, over four hills, and through countless curves on the road, lay the small town of Benwin. ‘He won't be able to,’ I said, watching as a sharp curve in the road grew closer and closer. So it's been a road with various curves and detours, not a straight, linear march towards a predetermined goal. Or position a mirror at a sharp curve in a road and you can suddenly see around the bend, catching a glimpse of something to come that otherwise would have been hidden. You don't go very far without a little hill or a curve in the road. His crisp white Greek Revival house still stands at a curve in the main road, momentarily blocking the bay view as you drive past. David's house was right around the curve in the road. They were at one of the biggest, cruelest curves on the winding road. The Impala ripped down the road and took the curve quickly; the fog had vanished now, and the sky was clear now. Each turn around Pacific Cove's many winding curves revealed smaller roads and hairpin turns. The way Keaira took the curves of this road Kat could tell Keaira had been riding for a few years. Even the most macho of male drivers do not want to sweat it out driving or get a crick in the neck, manoeuvring hairpin curves on mountain roads. Figure 5 provides an illustration of the corner tracking-error issue when negotiating a curve in a road. And he pushes the car past ninety, flying around the curves in the road. The mishap occurred approximately 150 yards from the member's home on a narrow dirt road with a blind curve. Rounding the curve in the road Crow makes a turn and heads straight towards the finish line ribbon strung across the road. Synonyms bend, turn, loop, curl, twist, hook 1.2curves A curving contour of a woman's figure. Example sentencesExamples There was a grace and an elegance she carried with her, and it went further than the sleek curves of her figure. The assymetric-cut skirt, single shoulder dress decorated with soft pleats and belts outlines the beautiful curve of women. Her stick figure turned into voluptuous curves. Her figure had curves in all the right places, her face was the kind that poets would write endless sonnets about, and her hair just seemed to ask him to run his fingers through it. For now, you could throw a T-shirt over your bikini, shop for a swimsuit that downplays your curves or figure out where you could enjoy a girls-only swim. Slim figure, nice curves, the girl was a walking boy magnet! All of the curves and contours of her torso seemed to fit right into mine. Her perfect voluptuous figure with the right curves in the right places were accentuated by the tight black leather pants and top she was wearing. Her figure curves gracefully from head to toe as she stands there, the only one left clapping. The dress hugged her body tightly but gently; bringing out her full curves and luscious figure. The magazine even dared to say the poncho was suitable for all body shapes, flattering curves and disguising hefty hips. Her figures now show off curves as well as angles, and include touches of Impressionism as they pose, row boats and toddle babies across sandy beaches. She noted her slim figure, slight curves suggested womanhood. Terence noticed the redheaded woman walking towards him, bright green eyes and a figure full of curves. She was dripping with water, the tunic outlining the high curve of her young chest, her hair falling heavily in her back, a large pool of water growing around her. The fabric of her clothes whirled about her figure stretching against her curves. Her body with its generous curves still followed its own limpid rhythms and her long braid with its colourful Patiala parandis moved slowly to and fro upon that impregnable behind. She stood tall, unlike Winnie, she was 5'8, with a nice slender figure, with womanly curves. The waist was fit to show her curves and the perfect figure of her body. She wore a rose-dyed sacking dress, exquisitely worked under the needle so that it graced her slight figure, presented the curves as clues. Synonyms outline, contour, contours, profile, delineation, form, shape, figure, shadow, features, lines, curves, configuration 1.3 A line on a graph (whether straight or curved) showing how one quantity varies with respect to another. the population curve Example sentencesExamples The area below the curve with respect to the cross section gives an idea of the missing ballast. A simple model, where the curve varies with fruits, was compared with a complex model, where the curve varies with genotypes and fruits. This situation leads to a blunter light-response curve, and lowers light use efficiency. Recruitment curves for beetle populations on each soybean genotype were plotted by fitting a Ricker model to the data using likelihood methods. Data for I / V curves were acquired by varying the patch potential when the channels were open and examining the changes in the current amplitude. As we saw earlier, x-axis is the pedal curve of the parabola with respect to its focus. The substantial shift of decay curves to lower frequency as a result of compound-DNA interactions is readily seen in Fig.4. If the slope of the curve does not vary as C increases, the character is isogonic; if it varies, this means that the growth-rate of the abdomen varies. We constructed population growth curves for the numbers of different genes / ORFs found in the tag location database. Each eigenfunction represents a family of deformations in the shape of the average curve for the population. From the fact that Newton uses the letter v for the ordinate, it may be inferred that Newton is thinking of the curve as being a graph of velocity against time. This measures the difference between the areas under the curve of a graph of actual distribution of cumulative income and one indicating equality of income distribution. Given that quantity best response curves slope downward, when firm 2's sales fall in country 1, firm 1 expands its output. The curve divides the population according to their adoption of new technologies. Most of us lie between two extreme ends of a bell-shaped curve of sleep length and efficiency. We used the data from the field experiment to estimate recruitment curves for beetle populations on each genotype. From the individual dose - response curves we chose doses in the linear part for the combination treatments. The curve forms from a graph plotting return and risk indicated by volatility, which is represented by standard deviation. The graphs are likelihood curves of population growth rate when the population size estimate is at its maximum-likelihood value. The major portion of the population curves and all population peaks occurred in soybean stage R5 to beginning R6. 1.4 A system in which grades are assigned to students based on their performance relative to other students, regardless of their actual knowledge of the subject. grades were marked on a curve Example sentencesExamples But I'm grading on today's curve, and in that context, they're both 8s. A measurement of compliance, like a school exam, can either be based on an absolute scale or reflect a curve of relative performance. Designing assessments to spread student scores permits the use of the normal curve to assign grades. But as it goes back to - I don't believe God grades on a curve. Well, he didn't like me so much as he hated everyone else and graded on a curve. There are few ways to combat this risk, one of which is grading on a curve. Some teachers grade on a curve, creating a ranking system and failing the bottommost students. The cities were then ranked first to last and assigned numerical grades based on a relative curve. And this ties in to some of the reasons why grading on a curve is the lesser of evils. When I was playing music, I found that there was a general practice of grading on a curve with respect to local music. Grading on a curve would take on a whole new meaning. 1.5Baseball another term for curveball Example sentencesExamples A midseason adjustment to throw the curve overhand helped his control. The tall right-hander took his sign, went into his windup, and threw the most hellacious curve I had ever seen. He understands changing speeds better than any other prospect, and mixes in an above-average curve. He throws a low 90s fastball and mixes it with a big-league curve. Finally, Ankiel struck Perez out on another curve. His fastball regularly hits 95 mph, and he throws a good slider and curve. Everts needed only eight pitches to retire the side, striking out one on a very impressive curve. verbkərvkərv Form or cause to form a curve. no object her mouth curved in a smile with object starting with arms outstretched, curve the body sideways Example sentencesExamples Her lips a luscious red with her mouth curving into a small smile as she approached him. She seemed more amused as her perfectly plucked eyebrows raised, a small smile curving her mouth. They flow like gusts of wind on a cool day, curving and twisting as they become yet another poem. She rolled her eyes but I could still see a small smile curving at the corner of her lips. But the youngsters who zoom on their bikes curving along the hairpin bends have to take a day off. The Seine snakes down to the bottom right before curving back up. These were generally straight but also included forms that were curved or spiral or had lateral arms. Each of the big spiraling arms was intended to be a megastructure, curving to a greenbelt. From the top, there were views south to Carlingford Lough and the sea, with the east coast of Ireland curving out of sight. When the chin is forward the front of the head becomes higher and the neck is curved in an exaggerated bend. Instead of merely curving down, the arms swoop down and around to hug the back of your head. Their tail is carried over their backs either tightly or loosely curled or curved in an arch. Weights were then progressively added to the weighing boat which caused the petiole to bend, curving upwards. The seat was royal blue velvet, the edges studded with brass, the arms curving forwards laced with silver. This gave the Roman soldier a great deal of protection as it curved around his body. Especially with the delightful back garden that Adrian designed with sweeps of gravel and curving footpaths. This good sense was reinforced when I saw the trail curving down the side of the mountain toward the city site. Louis curved his arm around her shoulders and placed a kiss on her cheek. Cathery smiled at Kami, her eyes bright with colors, her mouth curving upwards. The common name comes from the way in which the body is curved back on itself. Synonyms bend, turn, loop, wind, meander, undulate, snake, spiral, twist, coil, curl bent, arched, bowed, crescent, curving, wavy, twisted, twisty, sinuous, serpentine, meandering, undulating, curvilinear, curvy Phrases ahead of (or behind) the curve (especially of a business or politician) ahead of (or lagging behind) current thinking or trends. Example sentencesExamples It should come as no surprise, then, that politicians are scrambling to get ahead of the curve. I think you're way ahead of the curve, but you still have a lot to catch up on. Dent makes it his business to be ahead of the curve. Rackspace seems to be a bit ahead of the curve, but I expect that most companies will enable such pop-up chat services in the near-term. There are far-thinking businessmen who manage to see things new ways and think ahead of the curve, but they're always in the minority. Though I was behind the curve about blogging, I was ahead of the curve about email lists. When it comes to providing basic affordability, we might very well be ahead of the curve, but we're still barely pulling a passing grade. It was ahead of the curve about what the difficulties were. Japan's population is ahead of the curve - the old age population is higher, and population growth is lower - than in the USA. Predicting trends and staying ahead of the curve is essential for any savvy business owner. With technology trends changing rapidly, paying attention now will keep you ahead of the curve - and ahead of your competitors. Heroism, in hindsight, was cheap in that place in those days: Being just a couple of inches ahead of the curve would have done it. This is a textbook example of being ahead of the curve. Their articles were once ahead of the curve spotting trends before they had a chance to be lampooned on South Park. Plenty of athletes are already ahead of the curve. ‘I think normally we're behind, but this time we were slightly ahead of the curve,’ agrees Garrett. And we're ahead of the curve as far as growth is concerned. We can then begin to be ahead of the curve instead of behind it. An increase in imports from overseas, and automation of the weaving processes, mean that Selectus has had to keep ahead of the curve to stay in business. Those trends have implications for professionals who want to stay ahead of the curve and ensure a successful future. throw someone a curve informal Unexpectedly present someone with a challenge or disruption. just when you think you have this parenting thing down pat, they throw you a curve Example sentencesExamples "You've done everything that you can think of to ensure mission success, but Mars can still throw you a curve," said the former NASA Mars czar. Every once in a while life throws you a curve. Little did I know that he was about to throw me a curve that would bring out skills I did not even know I had. Life will always throw you curves. Dean, who sells himself as the presidential campaign's straightest shooter, is starting to throw voters some curves. Just when we got a bearing on a situation, the instructors would throw us another curve. This being the third edition of "Endurance," Zhou probably should have known that the producers would throw the contestants a curve. There's nothing like some long-term epidemiological data to really throw a curve to the diet industry. Origin Late Middle English: from Latin curvare ‘to bend’, from curvus ‘bent’. The noun dates from the late 17th century. noun.1 phr.
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