The Gradient

The Gradient is a measure of the 'rate of change' of a function.

The gradient of a curve is not constant (parts of the curve are steeper than others). Please click here for an animation which illustrates how the gradient changes at different points of a wave.

To consider the gradient of a curve at a particular point we can draw a tangent to the curve at that point (a straight line skimming the curve at the exact point). Look at the animation below to see how the tangent becomes indistinguishable from the curve as we zoom in closer.