Slabbing Slab"bing adjective [ See 1st Slab .] Adapted for forming slabs, or for dressing flat surfaces.

Slabbing machine , a milling machine.

Slabby Slab"by adjective [ Compar. Slabbier ; superl. Slabbiest .] [ See Slab , adjective ] 1. Thick; viscous.

They present you with a cup, and you must drink of a slabby stuff.

Selden.

2. Sloppy; slimy; miry. See Sloppy . Gay.

Slack Slack noun [ Confer Slag .] Small coal; also, coal dust; culm. Raymond.

Slack Slack noun [ Icelandic slakki a slope on a mountain edge.] A valley, or small, shallow dell. [ Prov. Eng.] Grose.

Slack Slack adjective [ Compar. Slacker ; superl. Slackest .] [ Middle English slak , Anglo-Saxon sleac ; akin to Old Saxon slak , Old High German slah , Prov. German schlack , Icelandic slakr , Swedish slak ; confer Sanskrit srj to let loose, to throw. Confer Slake .] Lax; not tense; not hard drawn; not firmly extended; as, a slack rope.

2. Weak; not holding fast; as, a slack hand. Milton.

3. Remiss; backward; not using due diligence or care; not earnest or eager; as, slack in duty or service.

The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness.

2 Pet. iii. 9.

4. Not violent, rapid, or pressing; slow; moderate; easy; as, business is slack . "With slack pace." Chaucer.

C...sar . . . about sunset, hoisting sail with a slack southwest, at midnight was becalmed.

Milton.

Slack in stays (Nautical) , slow in going about, as a ship. -- Slack water , the time when the tide runs slowly, or the water is at rest; or the interval between the flux and reflux of the tide. -- Slack-water navigation , navigation in a stream the depth of which has been increased, and the current diminished, by a dam or dams.

Syn. -- Loose; relaxed; weak; remiss; backward; abated; diminished; inactive; slow; tardy; dull.

Slack Slack adverb Slackly; as, slack dried hops.

Slack Slack noun The part of anything that hangs loose, having no strain upon it; as, the slack of a rope or of a sail.

Slack, Slacken Slack, Slack"en intransitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Slacked , Slackened ; present participle & verbal noun Slacking , Slackening .] [ See Slack , adjective ] 1. To become slack; to be made less tense, firm, or rigid; to decrease in tension; as, a wet cord slackens in dry weather.

2. To be remiss or backward; to be negligent.

3. To lose cohesion or solidity by a chemical combination with water; to slake; as, lime slacks .

4. To abate; to become less violent.

Whence these raging fires
Will slacken , if his breath stir not their flames.

Milton.

5. To lose rapidity; to become more slow; as, a current of water slackens .

6. To languish; to fail; to flag.

7. To end; to cease; to desist; to slake. [ Obsolete]

That through your death your lineage should slack .

Chaucer.

They will not of that firste purpose slack .

Chaucer.

Slack, Slacken Slack, Slack"en transitive verb 1. To render slack; to make less tense or firm; as, to slack a rope; to slacken a bandage. Wycklif (Acts xxvii. 40)

2. To neglect; to be remiss in. [ Obsolete] Shak.

Slack not the pressage.

Dryden.

3. To deprive of cohesion by combining chemically with water; to slake; as, to slack lime.

4. To cause to become less eager; to repress; to make slow or less rapid; to retard; as, to slacken pursuit; to slacken industry. "Rancor for to slack ." Chaucer.

I should be grieved, young prince, to think my presence
Unbent your thoughts, and slackened 'em to arms.

Addison.

In this business of growing rich, poor men should slack their pace.

South.

With such delay
Well plased, they slack their course.

Milton.

5. To cause to become less intense; to mitigate; to abate; to ease.

To respite, or deceive, or slack thy pain
Of this ill mansion.

Milton.

Air-slacked lime , lime slacked by exposure to the air, in consequence of the absorption of carton dioxide and water, by which it is converted into carbonate of lime and hydrate of lime.

Slacken Slack"en noun (Metal.) A spongy, semivitrifled substance which miners or smelters mix with the ores of metals to prevent their fusion. [ Written also slakin .]

Slackly Slack"ly adverb In a slack manner. Trench.

Slackness Slack"ness noun The quality or state of being slack.

Slade Slade noun [ Anglo-Saxon sl...d .] 1. A little dell or valley; a flat piece of low, moist ground. [ Obsolete] Drayton.

2. The sole of a plow.

Slag Slag noun [ Swedish slagg , or LG. slacke , whence German schlacke ; originally, perhaps, the splinters struck off from the metal by hammering. See Slay , transitive verb ] 1. The dross, or recrement, of a metal; also, vitrified cinders.

2. The scoria of a volcano.

Slag furnace , or Slag hearth (Metal.) , a furnace, or hearth, for extracting lead from slags or poor ore. -- Slag wool , mineral wool. See under Mineral .

Slag Slag noun (Metal.) A product of smelting, containing, mostly as silicates, the substances not sought to be produced as matte or metal, and having a lower specific gravity than the latter; -- called also, esp. in iron smelting, cinder . The slag of iron blast furnaces is essentially silicate of calcium, magnesium, and aluminium; that of lead and copper smelting furnaces contains iron.

Slag Slag intransitive verb & t. [ imperfect & past participle Slagged ; present participle & verbal noun Slagging .] (Metal.) To form, or form into, a slag; to agglomerate when heated below the fusion point.

Slaggy Slag"gy adjective Of or pertaining to slag; resembling slag; as, slaggy cobalt.

Slaie Slaie noun [ See Sley .] A weaver's reed; a sley.

Slake Slake transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Slaked ; present participle & verbal noun Slaking .] [ Middle English slaken to render slack, to slake, Anglo-Saxon sleacian , from sleac slack. See Slack , v. & adjective ] 1. To allay; to quench; to extinguish; as, to slake thirst. "And slake the heavenly fire." Spenser.

It could not slake mine ire nor ease my heart.

Shak.

2. To mix with water, so that a true chemical combination shall take place; to slack; as, to slake lime.

Slake Slake intransitive verb 1. To go out; to become extinct. "His flame did slake ." Sir T. Browne.

2. To abate; to become less decided. [ R.] Shak.

3. To slacken; to become relaxed. "When the body's strongest sinews slake ." [ R.] Sir J. Davies.

4. To become mixed with water, so that a true chemical combination takes place; as, the lime slakes .

Slake trough , a trough containing water in which a blacksmith cools a forging or tool.

Slakeless Slake"less adjective Not capable of being slaked.

Slakin Slak"in noun (Metal.) Slacken.

Slam Slam transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Slammed ; present participle & verbal noun Slamming .] [ Of Scand. origin; confer Icelandic slamra , slambra , sl...ma , Norw. slemba , slemma , dial. Swedish slämma .] 1. To shut with force and a loud noise; to bang; as, he slammed the door.

2. To put in or on some place with force and loud noise; -- usually with down ; as, to slam a trunk down on the pavement.

3. To strike with some implement with force; hence, to beat or cuff. [ Prov. Eng.]

4. To strike down; to slaughter. [ Prov. Eng.]

5. To defeat (opponents at cards) by winning all the tricks of a deal or a hand. Hoyle.

To slam to , to shut or close with a slam. "He slammed to the door." W. D. Howells.

Slam Slam intransitive verb To come or swing against something, or to shut, with sudden force so as to produce a shock and noise; as, a door or shutter slams .

Slam Slam noun 1. The act of one who, or that which, slams.

2. The shock and noise produced in slamming.

The slam and the scowl were lost upon Sam.

Dickens.

3. (Card Playing) Winning all the tricks of a deal.

4. The refuse of alum works. [ Prov. Eng.]

Slam Slam noun (Card Playing) Winning all the tricks of a deal (called, in bridge, grand slam , the winning of all but one of the thirteen tricks being called a little slam ).

Slam-bang Slam"-bang` adverb With great violence; with a slamming or banging noise. [ Colloq.]

Slamkin, Slammerkin Slam"kin, Slam"mer·kin noun [ Confer German schlampe , schlamp , dim. schlämpchen ; schlampen to dangle, to be slovenly in one's dress.] A slut; a slatternly woman. [ Obsolete or Prov. Eng.]

Slander Slan"der noun [ Middle English sclandere , Old French esclandre , esclandle , escandre , French esclandre , from Latin scandalum , Greek ......... a snare, stumbling block, offense, scandal; probably originally, the spring of a trap, and akin to Sanskrit skand to spring, leap. See Scan , and confer Scandal .] 1. A false tale or report maliciously uttered, tending to injure the reputation of another; the malicious utterance of defamatory reports; the dissemination of malicious tales or suggestions to the injury of another.

Whether we speak evil of a man to his face or behind his back; the former way, indeed, seems to be the most generous, but yet is a great fault, and that which we call "reviling;" the latter is more mean and base, and that which we properly call " slander ", or "Backbiting."

Tillotson.

[ We] make the careful magistrate
The mark of slander .

B. Jonson.

2. Disgrace; reproach; dishonor; opprobrium.

Thou slander of thy mother's heavy womb.

Shak.

3. (Law) Formerly, defamation generally, whether oral or written; in modern usage, defamation by words spoken; utterance of false, malicious, and defamatory words, tending to the damage and derogation of another; calumny. See the Note under Defamation . Burril.

Slander Slan"der transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Slandered ; present participle & verbal noun Slandering .] 1. To defame; to injure by maliciously uttering a false report; to tarnish or impair the reputation of by false tales maliciously told or propagated; to calumniate.

O, do not slander him, for he is kind.

Shak.

2. To bring discredit or shame upon by one's acts.

Tax not so bad a voice
To slander music any more than once.

Shak.

Syn. -- To asperse; defame; calumniate; vilify; malign; belie; scandalize; reproach. See Asperse .

Slanderer Slan"der·er noun One who slanders; a defamer; a calumniator. Jer. Taylor.

Slanderous Slan"der·ous adjective 1. Given or disposed to slander; uttering slander. " Slanderous tongue." Shak.

2. Embodying or containing slander; calumnious; as, slanderous words, speeches, or reports.

-- Slan"der*ous*ly , adverb -- Slan"der*ous*ness , noun

Slang Slang imperfect of Sling . Slung. [ Archaic]

Slang Slang noun Any long, narrow piece of land; a promontory. [ Local, Eng.] Holland.

Slang Slang noun [ Confer Sling .] A fetter worn on the leg by a convict. [ Eng.]

Slang Slang noun [ Said to be of Gypsy origin; but probably from Scand., and akin to English sling ; confer Norw. sleng a slinging, an invention, device, slengja to sling, to cast, slengja kjeften (literally, to sling the jaw) to use abusive language, to use slang, slenjeord ( ord = word) an insulting word, a new word that has no just reason for being.] Low, vulgar, unauthorized language; a popular but unauthorized word, phrase, or mode of expression; also, the jargon of some particular calling or class in society; low popular cant; as, the slang of the theater, of college, of sailors, etc.

Slang Slang transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Slanged ; present participle & verbal noun Slanging .] To address with slang or ribaldry; to insult with vulgar language. [ Colloq.]

Every gentleman abused by a cabman or slanged by a bargee was bound there and then to take off his coat and challenge him to fisticuffs.

London Spectator.

Slang-whanger Slang"-whang`er noun [ Slang + whang to beat.] One who uses abusive slang; a ranting partisan. [ Colloq. or Humorous] W. Irving.

Slanginess Slang"i·ness noun Quality of being slangy.

Slangous Slan"gous adjective Slangy. [ R.] John Bee.

Slangy Slang"y adjective Of or pertaining to slang; of the nature of slang; disposed to use slang. [ Written also slangey .]

Slank Slank imperfect & past participle of Slink .

Slant Slant intransitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Slanted ; present participle & verbal noun Slanting .] [ Middle English slenten to slope, slide; confer Swedish slinta to slide.] To be turned or inclined from a right line or level; to lie obliquely; to slope.

On the side of younder slanting hill.

Dodsley.

Slant Slant transitive verb To turn from a direct line; to give an oblique or sloping direction to; as, to slant a line.

Slant Slant noun 1. A slanting direction or plane; a slope; as, it lies on a slant .

2. An oblique reflection or gibe; a sarcastic remark.

Slant or wind , a local variation of the wind from its general direction.

Slant Slant adjective [ Confer dial. Swedish slant . See Slant , intransitive verb ] Inclined from a direct line, whether horizontal or perpendicular; sloping; oblique. "The slant lightning." Milton.

Slanting Slant"ing adjective Oblique; sloping. -- Slant"ing*ly , adverb

Slantwise, Slantly Slant"wise`, Slant"ly adverb In an inclined direction; obliquely; slopingly.

Slap Slap noun [ Middle English slappe ; akin to LG. slappe , German schlappe ; probably of imitative origin.] A blow, esp. one given with the open hand, or with something broad.

Slap Slap transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Slapped ; present participle & verbal noun Slapping .] To strike with the open hand, or with something broad.

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
You are here: Webster > Letter S > Page 117 of 266.
« Previous ¦109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 ¦ Next »