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slew - 21 dictionary results

slew

1  [sloo]
Use slew in a Sentence
–verb
pt. of slay.

slew

2  [sloo]
–noun Informal.
a large number or quantity: a whole slew of people.
Also, slue.

Origin:
1830–40, Americanism; < Ir sluagh crowd, throng, army, host

slew

3  [sloo]
–verb (used with object), verb (used without object), noun
slue 1 .

slew

4  [sloo]
–noun U.S., Canadian.
slough 1 (def. 3).

slay

  [sley] verb, slew, slain, slay⋅ing, noun
–verb (used with object)
1. to kill by violence.
2. to destroy; extinguish.
3. sley.
4. Informal. to impress strongly; overwhelm, esp. by humor: Your jokes slay me.
5. Obsolete. to strike.
–verb (used without object)
6. to kill or murder.
–noun
7. sley.
Origin:
bef. 900; ME sleen, slayn, OE slēan; c. D slaan, G schlagen, ON slā, Goth slahan to strike, beat

Related forms:
slay⋅a⋅ble, adjective
slayer, noun

Synonyms:
1. murder, slaughter, massacre, butcher, assassinate. 2. annihilate, ruin.

sley

  [sley] noun, plural sleys, verb
–noun
1. the reed of a loom.
2. the warp count in woven fabrics.
3. British. the lay of a loom.
–verb (used with object)
4. to draw (warp ends) through the heddle eyes of the harness or through the dents of the reed in accordance with a given plan for weaving a fabric.
Also, slay, sleigh.

Origin:
bef. 1050; ME sleye, OE slege weaver's reed; akin to D slag, G Schlag, ON slag, Goth slahs a blow; see slay

slough

1  [slou for 1, 2, 4; sloo for 3]
–noun
1. an area of soft, muddy ground; swamp or swamplike region.
2. a hole full of mire, as in a road.
3. Also, slew, slue. Northern U.S. and Canadian. a marshy or reedy pool, pond, inlet, backwater, or the like.
4. a condition of degradation, despair, or helplessness.
Origin:
bef. 900; ME; OE slōh; c. MLG slōch, MHG sluoche ditch

slue

1  [sloo] verb, slued, slu⋅ing, noun
–verb (used with object)
1. to turn (a mast or other spar) around on its own axis, or without removing it from its place.
2. to swing around.
–verb (used without object)
3. to turn about; swing around.
–noun
4. the act of sluing.
5. a position slued to.
Also, slew.

Origin:
1760–70; orig. uncert.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To slew
slay   (slā)   
tr.v.   slew (slōō), slain (slān), slay·ing, slays
  1. To kill violently.
  2. past tense and past participle often slayed Slang To overwhelm, as with laughter or love: Those old jokes still slay me.

[Middle English slen, slayen, from Old English slēan.]
slay'er n.
slew 1 also slue   (slōō)   
n.   Informal
A large amount or number; a lot: a slew of unpaid bills.

[Irish Gaelic sluagh, multitude, from Old Irish slúag.]
slew 2   (slōō)   
v.  Past tense of slay.
slew 3   (slōō)   
n.  Variant of slough1.
slew 4   (slōō)   
v.   & n.
Variant of slue1.
slough 1   (slōō, slou)   
n.  
  1. A depression or hollow, usually filled with deep mud or mire.
  2. also slue A stagnant swamp, marsh, bog, or pond, especially as part of a bayou, inlet, or backwater.
  3. A state of deep despair or moral degradation.

[Middle English, from Old English slōh.]
slough'y adj.
slue 1 also slew   (slōō)   
v.   slued also slewed, slu·ing also slew·ing, slues also slews

v.   tr.
  1. To turn (something) on an axis; rotate: slued the swivel chair around; sluing the boom of a crane.
  2. To turn sharply; veer: braked and slued the car around.
v.   intr.
  1. To turn about an axis; pivot.
  2. To turn or slide sideways or off course; skid.
n.  
  1. The act of sluing.
  2. The position to which something has slued.

[Origin unknown.]
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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Slew

Slew\ (sl[=oo]), n. [See Slough a wet place.] A wet place; a river inlet.

The praire round about is wet, at times almost marshy, especially at the borders of the great reedy slews. --T. Roosevelt.

Slew

Slew\, imp. of Slay.

Slew

Slew\, v. t. See Slue.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : slew
Spanish: torcer,
German: sich drehen,
Japanese: 回る
More Translations »

slew  (n.1)
"swampy place," 1708, N.Amer. variant of slough.

slew  (v.)
"to turn, swing, twist," 1834, earlier slue (1769), a nautical word, of unknown origin. Slewed (1801) is old nautical slang for "drunk."

slew  (n.2)
"large number," 1839, from Ir. sluagh "a host, crowd, multitude."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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