Steepnesses

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The quality or condition of having a sharp incline or slope
2. variations in gradient that indicate how much elevation is gained over a distance
3. the extent to which a path or surface rises abruptly in relation to the horizontal axis

Etymology: Steepnesses is simply the plural of "steepness", so the interesting history lies in its two parts. "Steep" descends from Old English "stēap", which meant high, lofty or tall, and it traces back through Proto-West Germanic and Proto-Germanic to a root shared with the sense of rising or standing high. The adjective's original sense was about height rather than the angle of a slope, and the modern meaning of inclination developed from that idea of something rising sharply. The ending "-ness" is a native English suffix, from Old English "-nes", that turns an adjective into a noun naming a quality. "Steepness" is therefore a plain formation: "steep" plus "-ness", meaning the state of being steep. Its plural, "steepnesses", is used when speaking of several distinct degrees of slope, such as the different gradients along a route or the varying inclines of a range of hills.

Synonyms: inclines, slopes, gradients

Antonyms: flatnesses, levelnesses