Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary - incline

 I. verb  (~d; inclining)  Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French ~r, encliner, from Latin inclinare, from in- + clinare to lean — more at lean  Date: 14th century  intransitive verb  1. to bend the head or body forward ; bow  2. to lean, tend, or become drawn toward an opinion or course of conduct  3. to deviate from a line, direction, or course; specifically to deviate from the vertical or horizontal  transitive verb  1. to cause to stoop or bow ; bend  2. to have influence on ; persuade his love of books ~d him toward a literary career  3. to give a bend or slant to  • ~r noun Synonyms:  ~, bias, dispose, predispose mean to influence one to have or take an attitude toward something. ~ implies a tendency to favor one of two or more actions or conclusions I ~ to agree. bias suggests a settled and predictable leaning in one direction and connotes unfair prejudice the experience biased him against foreigners. dispose suggests an affecting of one's mood or temper so as to ~ one toward something her nature disposes her to trust others. predispose implies the operation of a disposing influence well in advance of the opportunity to manifest itself does fictional violence predispose them to accept real violence?.  II. noun  Date: 1846 an ~d plane ; grade, slope