'aslant' originates from English, formed with the prefix 'a-' (from Old English 'on', meaning 'on, in') combined with 'slant' (from Middle English 'slant').

'aslant' changed from Middle English forms such as 'a-slant' or phrases like 'on slant' and later became the single word 'aslant' in Early Modern English.

Initially it meant 'on a slope; at an angle,' and over time it has retained that core sense, now used as an adjective, adverb, and occasionally as a preposition meaning 'obliquely.'