Dictionary  curvePronunciation: (kûrv), [key] —n., v., curved, curv•ing, —adj. —n. 1. a continuously bending line, without angles. 2. the act or extent of curving. 3. any curved outline, form, thing, or part. 4. a curved section of a road, path, hallway, etc. 5. Railroads.a curved section of track: in the U.S. the curve is often expressed as the central angle, measured in degrees, of a curved section of track subtended by a chord 100 ft. (30 m) long (degree of curve). 6. Also called curve' ball". Baseball. a. a pitch delivered with a spin that causes the ball to veer from a normal straight path, away from the side from which it was thrown. b. the course of such a pitched ball. 7. a graphic representation of the variations effected in something by the influence of changing conditions; graph. 8. Math.a collection of points whose coordinates are continuous functions of a single independent variable. 9. a misleading or deceptive trick; cheat; deception. 10. Educ.a grading system based on the scale of performance of a group, so that those performing better, regardless of their actual knowledge of the subject, receive high grades: The new English professor marks on a curve. Cf. absolute (def. 10). 11. a curved guide used in drafting. 12. ahead of( or behind)the curve, at the forefront of (or lagging behind) recent developments, trends, etc. 13. throw (someone) a curve, a. to take (someone) by surprise, esp. in a negative way. b. to mislead or deceive. —v.t. 1. to bend in a curve; cause to take the course of a curve. 2. to grade on a curve. 3. Baseball.to pitch a curve to. —v.i. to bend in a curve; take the course of a curve. —adj. curved. Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.
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