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The gradient is a fancy word for derivative, or the rate of change of a function. Itâs a vector (a direction to move) that. 1  Points in the direction of greatest increase of a function (intuition on why)  Is zero at a local maximum or local minimum (because there is no single direction of increase)
Gradient (Slope) of a Straight Line. The Gradient (also called Slope) of a straight line shows how steep a straight line is. Calculate. To calculate the Gradient: Divide the change in height by the change in horizontal distance.