A curve is drawn expressing the kinetic energy of a particle as a function of the distance traversed (on X-axis). The slope of this curve represents the instantaneous

We know that,

Kinetic energy =$\frac{1}{2}m{v}^2$

Differentiating with respect to x 

$$\begin{gathered} \frac{d\left(KE\right)}{dx}=mv\frac{dv}{dx} \\ =m\left(\frac{dx}{dt}\right)\left(\frac{dv}{dx}\right) \left[\because v=\frac{dx}{dt}\right] \end{gathered}$$

substituting $\frac{dv}{dt}=a$

$\frac{d\left(KE\right)}{dx}=ma=F$

The correct answer is force.