Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- adjective Having a sharp inclination; precipitous.
- adjective At a rapid or precipitous rate.
- adjective Excessive; stiff.
- adjective Ambitious; difficult.
- noun A precipitous slope.
- intransitive verb To soak in liquid in order to cleanse, soften, or extract a given property from.
- intransitive verb To infuse or subject thoroughly to.
- intransitive verb To make thoroughly wet; saturate.
- intransitive verb To undergo a soaking in liquid.
- noun The act or process of steeping.
- noun The state of being steeped.
- noun A liquid, bath, or solution in which something is steeped.
from The Century Dictionary.
- Having an almost perpendicular slope; precipitous; sheer.
- Elevated; high; lofty.
- Excessive; difficult; forbidding: as, a steep undertaking; a steep price.
- Bright; glittering; fiery.
- noun A steep or precipitous place; an abrupt ascent or descent; a precipice.
- To tilt (a barrel).
- To soak in a liquid; macerate: as, to
steep barley; to steep herbs. - To bathe with a liquid; wet; moisten.
- To imbue or impregnate as with a specified influence; cause to become permeated or pervaded (with): followed by in.
- To be bathed in a liquid; soak.
- noun The process of steeping; the state of being steeped, soaked, or permeated: used chiefly in the phrase in steep.
- noun That in which anything is steeped; specifically, a fertilizing liquid in which seeds are soaked to quicken germination.
- noun Rennet: so called from being steeped before it is used.
- noun Same as
brasque . - noun plural The solutions or baths in which metals are dipped preparatory to electro-plating.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- adjective obsolete Bright; glittering; fiery.
- intransitive verb colloq. To undergo the process of soaking in a liquid.
- noun Something steeped, or used in steeping; a fertilizing liquid to hasten the germination of seeds.
- noun Prov. Eng. A rennet bag.
- transitive verb To soak in a liquid; to macerate; to extract the essence of by soaking. Often used figuratively.
- noun A precipitous place, hill, mountain, rock, or ascent; any elevated object sloping with a large angle to the plane of the horizon; a precipice.
- adjective Making a large angle with the plane of the horizon; ascending or descending rapidly with respect to a horizontal line or a level; precipitous.
- adjective obsolete Difficult of access; not easily reached; lofty; elevated; high.
- adjective Slang Excessive.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- adjective Of a near-vertical
gradient ; of aslope ,surface ,curve , etc. that proceedsupward at an angle near vertical. - adjective informal
expensive - verb To soak an item (or to be soaked) in liquid in order to gradually add or remove components to or from the item
- verb To be
imbued with anabstract quality - verb To make tea (or other beverage) by placing leaves in hot water.
- noun A
liquid used in a steeping process - noun B
escarpment
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- adjective of a slope; set at a high angle
- verb devote (oneself) fully to
- verb let sit in a liquid to extract a flavor or to cleanse
- adjective having a sharp inclination
- noun a steep place (as on a hill)
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
Support
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Examples
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At this point in what he describes as a steep learning curve, Tjian does not foresee major changes at HHMI.
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The US was in steep debt after WWII, but that was followed by the prosperity of the 1950s.
How to Fix the Deficit, Part II | Heretical Ideas Magazine 2010
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With the economy in steep decline, the government is looking to connect increased agricultural employment as one answer to rising unemployment, especially for temp workers with cancelled contracts.
Global Voices in English » Go Farm, Young Man! – How Farming in Japan is Changing 2009
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Supposedly the Church of England is in steep decline in England itself.
A Flock Divided 2009
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The fact that British defense capabilities are in steep decline means that even more of the burden of defending what used to be called the Free World will fall on our overstretched armed forces.
Britain Bows Out of the Security Game Max Boot 2010
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Both filed separately for bankruptcy last year, Jennifer's unemployment benefits expired, and monthly premiums for the family's private health insurance remain steep because of her preexisting condition.
Struggling Mom Jennifer Cline Sells Obama Letter For $7,000 To Survive T.J. Ortenzi 2010
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State industries still dominate the Chinese economy, even though they are in steep decline.
Extreme Free Trade, Arnold Kling | EconLog | Library of Economics and Liberty 2009
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Way before there were steroids, a few players somehow beat the odds and put up some of the best seasons of their careers at an age when most players were in steep decline.
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Supposedly the Church of England is in steep decline in England itself.
A Flock Divided 2009
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Monthly data released Friday by major credit-card issuers indicated losses from souring loans remain steep, while delinquencies, a closely followed gauge of future losses, declined, but at a slow pace.
Card Issuers Wrestle With Slow Pace of Recovery Aparajita Saha-Bubna 2010
tree commented on the word steep
the verb. like tea.
June 30, 2008