gradual

1. 1.

   proceeding in small stages

   “a gradual increase in prices”

   Antonymssudden

   Similarbit-by-bitgradational
2. 2.

   (of a topographical gradient) not steep or abrupt

   “a gradual slope”

   Antonymssteep

   Similareasysloping

1. 1.

   (Roman Catholic Church) an antiphon (usually from the Book of Psalms) immediately after the epistle at Mass

   Broaderantiphon

   Roman Catholic

Other forms of gradual

plural

graduals·

Forms marked · are formed by the regular rule rather than recorded in the source data. English keeps a few hundred irregulars and the rest follow the pattern, so the rule is right far more often than not — but it is a rule, and the mark says so.

Questions about gradual

What does gradual mean?

gradual means "proceeding in small stages". That is the primary sense; the word has 3 in total, listed in full on this page.

How many syllables are in gradual?

gradual has 3 syllables: grad-u-al. The stress falls on "grad". In IPA it is /ˈɡɹædʒuəl/.

What is the opposite of gradual?

The recorded antonyms are sudden, steep.

Is gradual a common word?

gradual is banded "Uncommon" — turns up in careful writing rather than conversation. The band comes from how often the word appears in a large corpus of everyday English, not from an editor's impression.