slack
18 dictionary results for: slack
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
slack1 
[slak] Pronunciation Key
—Related forms
[slak] Pronunciation Key –adjective
–adverb
–noun
–verb (used with object)
–verb (used without object)
—Idiom
| 1. | not tight, taut, firm, or tense; loose: a slack rope. |
| 2. | negligent; careless; remiss: slack proofreading. |
| 3. | slow, sluggish, or indolent: He is slack in answering letters. |
| 4. | not active or busy; dull; not brisk: the slack season in an industry. |
| 5. | moving very slowly, as the tide, wind, or water. |
| 6. | weak; lax. |
| 7. | Nautical. easy (def. 15a). |
| 8. | in a slack manner. |
| 9. | a slack condition or part. |
| 10. | the part of a rope, sail, or the like, that hangs loose, without strain upon it. |
| 11. | a decrease in activity, as in business or work: a sudden slack in output. |
| 12. | a period of decreased activity. |
| 13. | Geography. a cessation in a strong flow, as of a current at its turn. |
| 14. | a depression between hills, in a hillside, or in the land surface. |
| 15. | Prosody. (in sprung rhythm) the unaccented syllable or syllables. |
| 16. | British Dialect. a morass; marshy ground; a hollow or dell with soft, wet ground at the bottom. |
| 17. | to be remiss in respect to (some matter, duty, right, etc.); shirk; leave undone: He slacked the most important part. |
| 18. | to make or allow to become less active, vigorous, intense, etc.; relax (efforts, labor, speed, etc.); lessen; moderate (often fol. by up). |
| 19. | to make loose, or less tense or taut, as a rope; loosen (often fol. by off or out). |
| 20. | to slake (lime). |
| 21. | to be remiss; shirk one's duty or part. |
| 22. | to become less active, vigorous, rapid, etc. (often fol. by up): Business is slacking up. |
| 23. | to become less tense or taut, as a rope; to ease off. |
| 24. | to become slaked, as lime. |
| 25. | take up the slack,
|
—Related forms
slack·ing·ly, adverb
slackly, adverb
slackness, noun
—Synonyms 1. relaxed. 2. lazy, weak. 3. dilatory, tardy, late. 4. idle, quiet. 11. slowing, relaxation. 17. neglect. 18. reduce, slacken. 21. malinger.
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
slack2
[slak] Pronunciation Key
[slak] Pronunciation Key –noun
| the fine screenings of coal. |
[Origin: 1400–50; late ME sleck < MD slacke, slecke]
]
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
| slack 1
(slāk) Pronunciation Key
adj. slack·er, slack·est
v. slacked, slack·ing, slacks v. tr.
v. intr.
n.
adv. In a slack manner: a banner hanging slack. Phrasal Verb(s): slack off To decrease in activity or intensity. Idiom(s): cut/give (someone) some slack Slang To make an allowance for (someone), as in allowing more time to finish something. [Middle English slak, from Old English slæc; see slēg- in Indo-European roots.] slack'ly adv., slack'ness n. |
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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
| slack 2
(slāk) Pronunciation Key
n. A mixture of coal fragments, coal dust, and dirt that remains after screening coal. [Middle English sleck.] |
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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
| slack 3
(slāk) Pronunciation Key
n. Chiefly British
[Middle English slak, from Old Norse slakki.] |
(Download Now or Buy the Book)
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
slack (n.)
slack (n.)
"coal dust," c.1440, sleck, probably from M.Du. slacke, M.L.G. slecke "slag, small pieces left after coal is screened," perhaps related to slagge "splinter flying off metal when it is struck" (see slag).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
slack (adj.)
slack (adj.)
O.E. slæc "loose, careless" (in ref. to personal conduct), from P.Gmc. *slakas (cf. O.S. slak, O.N. slakr, O.H.G. slah "slack," M.Du. lac "fault, lack"), from PIE base *(s)leg- "to be slack" (see lax). Sense of "not tight" (in ref. to things) is first recorded c.1300. The verb is attested from 1520; slacken (v.) first recorded 1580. Slack-key (1975) translates Hawaiian ki ho'alu First record of slack-jawed (1901) is in Kipling. Slack water "time when tide is not flowing" is from 1769. Slacker popularized 1994, though meaning "person who shirks work" dates back to 1898.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
slack (n.)
slack (n.)
1794, "loose part or end" (of a rope, sail, etc.), from slack (adj.); hense fig. senses in take up the slack (1930) and slang cut (someone) some slack (1968). Meaning "quiet period, lull" is from 1851. Slacks "loose trousers" first recorded 1824, originally military.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This
| slack | |
adjective | |
| 1. | not tense or taut; "the old man's skin hung loose and grey"; "slack and wrinkled skin"; "slack sails"; "a slack rope" [syn: loose] |
| 2. | flowing with little speed as e.g. at the turning of the tide; "slack water" |
| 3. | lacking in rigor or strictness; "such lax and slipshod ways are no longer acceptable"; "lax in attending classes"; "slack in maintaining discipline" [syn: lax] |
noun | |
| 1. | dust consisting of a mixture of small coal fragments and coal dust and dirt that sifts out when coal is passed over a sieve |
| 2. | a noticeable deterioration in performance or quality; "the team went into a slump"; "a gradual slack in output"; "a drop-off in attendance"; "a falloff in quality" [syn: slump] |
| 3. | a stretch of water without current or movement; "suddenly they were in a slack and the water was motionless" |
| 4. | a soft wet area of low-lying land that sinks underfoot [syn: mire] |
| 5. | the quality of being loose (not taut); "he hadn't counted on the slackness of the rope" |
| 6. | a cord or rope or cable that is hanging loosely; "he took up the slack" |
verb | |
| 1. | avoid responsibilities and work, be idle |
| 2. | be inattentive to, or neglect; "He slacks his attention" |
| 3. | release tension on; "slack the rope" |
| 4. | make less active or fast; "He slackened his pace as he got tired"; "Don't relax your efforts now" |
| 5. | become slow or slower; "Production slowed" [syn: slow] |
| 6. | make less active or intense [syn: slake] |
| 7. | become less in amount or intensity; "The storm abated"; "The rain let up after a few hours" [syn: abate] |
| 8. | cause to heat and crumble by treatment with water; "slack lime" |
WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.
Free On-line Dictionary of Computing - Cite This Source - Share This
slack
1.
2.
Since Unix files are stored compactly, except for the unavoidable wastage in the last block or fragment, it might be said that "Unix has no slack".
See ha ha only serious.
[The Jargon File]
(1995-03-01)
The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing, © 1993-2007 Denis Howe
Jargon File - Cite This Source - Share This
1. Space allocated to a disk file but not actually used to store useful information. The techspeak equivalent is `internal fragmentation'. Antonym: hole.
2. In the theology of the Church of the SubGenius, a mystical substance or quality that is the prerequisite of all human happiness.
Since Unix files are stored compactly, except for the unavoidable wastage in the last block or fragment, it might be said that "Unix has no slack". See ha ha only serious.
slack
n.1. Space allocated to a disk file but not actually used to store useful information. The techspeak equivalent is `internal fragmentation'. Antonym: hole.
2. In the theology of the Church of the SubGenius, a mystical substance or quality that is the prerequisite of all human happiness.
Since Unix files are stored compactly, except for the unavoidable wastage in the last block or fragment, it might be said that "Unix has no slack". See ha ha only serious.
Jargon File 4.2.0
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
Slack
Slack\, n. [Cf. Slag.] Small coal; also, coal dust; culm. --Raymond.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
Slack
Slack\, n. [Icel. slakki a slope on a mountain edge.] A valley, or small, shallow dell. [Prov. Eng.] --Grose.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
Slack
Slack\, a. [Compar. Slacker; superl. Slackest.] [OE. slak, AS. sleac; akin to OS. slak, OHG. slah, Prov. G. schlack, Icel. slakr, Sw. slak; cf. Skr. s[.r]j to let loose, to throw. Cf. 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 (Naut.), 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.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Slack
Slack\, adv. Slackly; as, slack dried hops.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
Slack
Slack\, n. The part of anything that hangs loose, having no strain upon it; as, the slack of a rope or of a sail.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
Slack
Slack\, Slacken \Slack"en\, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Slacked, Slackened; p. pr. & vb. n. Slacking, Slackening.] [See Slack, a.]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. [Obs.] That through your death your lineage should slack. --Chaucer. They will not of that firste purpose slack. --Chaucer.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
Slack
Slack\, Slacken \Slack"en\, v. t. 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. [Obs.] --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.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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