Ramp

Part of speech: noun, verb

Pronunciation: /ɹæmp/

Definitions

1. A sloping structure that connects different levels for easier access ; to raise or increase something, often quickly or gradually ; a wild garlic plant with broad, edible leaves used in cooking
2. An angled surface designed to help people or vehicles move between heights ; to cause something to grow or become larger, especially suddenly ; a wild edible plant resembling an onion with a strong flavor
3. A slanting pathway built for easy movement between elevations ; to climb or escalate in amount, size, or intensity ; a species of wild onion with distinctive leaves commonly foraged

Etymology: The sloping kind of ramp, a passage rising between floors or up to a higher level, comes from a verb meaning to crawl or climb. Old French "ramper" meant to crawl, climb or scale up, and the noun "rampe" was formed from it, so the slope is named for the act of clambering. That verb in turn descends from a Frankish word meaning to contract or crumple, linked to Old English "ġehrimpan", to wrinkle, which gives the idea a curled, shrinking origin. Ramp is also a doublet of "romp", since both trace back to the same ancestor and entered English along separate paths. The old sense of romping was an ungainly leaping or rearing, which again fits the notion of pulling oneself upward.

Synonyms: incline, slope, grade, hill, rise

Antonyms: flat, level, plain, decline, descent