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slackness - 3 dictionary results
Slackness
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slack

1  [slak]
Use slackness in a Sentence
–adjective
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).
–adverb
8. in a slack manner.
–noun
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.
–verb (used with object)
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).
–verb (used without object)
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.
—Idiom
25. take up the slack,
a. to pull in or make taut a loose section of a rope, line, wire, etc.: Take up the slack before releasing the kite.
b. to provide or compensate for something that is missing or incomplete: New sources of oil will take up the slack resulting from the embargo.
Origin:
bef. 900; ME slac (adj.), OE sleac, slæc; c. ON slakr, OHG slach, L laxus lax

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
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To slackness
slack 1   (slāk)   
adj.   slack·er, slack·est
  1. Moving slowly; sluggish: a slack pace.
  2. Lacking in activity; not busy: a slack season for the travel business.
  3. Not tense or taut; loose: a slack rope; slack muscles. See Synonyms at loose.
  4. Lacking firmness; flaccid: a slack grip.
  5. Lacking in diligence or due care or concern; negligent: a slack worker. See Synonyms at negligent.
  6. Flowing or blowing with little speed: a slack current; slack winds.
  7. Linguistics Pronounced with the muscles of the tongue and jaw relatively relaxed; lax.
v.   slacked, slack·ing, slacks

v.   tr.
  1. To make slower or looser; slacken.
  2. To be careless or remiss in doing: slack one's duty.
  3. To slake (lime).
v.   intr.
  1. To be or become slack.
  2. To evade work; shirk.
n.  
  1. A loose part, as of a rope or sail.
  2. A lack of tension; looseness.
  3. A period of little activity; a lull.
    1. A cessation of movement in a current of air or water.
    2. An area of still water.
  5. Unused capacity: still some slack in the economy.
  6. slacks Casual trousers that are not part of a suit.
adv.  In a slack manner: a banner hanging slack.
Phrasal Verb(s):
slack offTo decrease in activity or intensity.

Idiom(s):
cut/give (someone) some slackSlang 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.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Slackness

Slack"ness\, n. The quality or state of being slack.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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