rasante

grade, slope, gradient

noun rrah-SAHN-teh Rare

Also means

grazing shot (military)

Usage Note

Rasante is used in road engineering and topography for the profile or gradient of a road surface — cambio de rasante is a crest or dip where visibility is limited, a key term in Spanish traffic law. As an adjective (invariable) it means 'grazing' or 'skimming the surface': vuelo rasante (low-level flight), bala rasante (grazing bullet). Drivers must reduce speed at cambios de rasante.

Examples

"Reduzca la velocidad en el cambio de rasante."

Natural Translation

Reduce speed at the crest of the hill.

Free starter pack

Building your Spanish vocabulary?

Get the 100 most common Spanish words as a free PDF — one email, no spam.

Related Words

Explore Spanish by topic

SpanishNow

Preterite vs. Imperfect: Spanish Past Tense Made Easy

Preterite vs. imperfect: use the preterite for finished events, the imperfect for ongoing scenery. A trigger-word cheat sheet, flowchart, and examples.

June 9, 2026 6 min read

SpanishNow

Mexican Spanish Slang Every Traveler Should Know

Mexican Spanish slang decoded for travelers: what güey, mande, órale, and ahorita really mean, who you can safely say them to, and how rude each one is.

June 9, 2026 6 min read

SpanishNow

Spanish Subjunctive Explained Simply for Beginners

The Spanish subjunctive is a mood, not a tense — use it after a WEIRDO trigger plus que. Learn the one rule, the yo-form recipe, and the lines you already say.

June 9, 2026 5 min read

SpanishNow

Ser vs. Estar: When to Use Each in Spanish

Ser vs estar made simple: how you feel and where you are use estar, everything else uses ser. Master the rule, the exceptions, and the traps that flip meaning.

June 3, 2026 6 min read