slide

[ slahyd ]
See synonyms for: slideslidingslid on Thesaurus.com

verb (used without object),slid [slid], /slɪd/, slid or slid·den [slid-n], /ˈslɪd n/, slid·ing.
  1. to move along in continuous contact with a smooth or slippery surface: to slide down a snow-covered hill.

  2. to slip or skid.

  1. to glide or pass smoothly.

  2. to slip easily, quietly, or unobtrusively on or as if on a track, channel, or guide rail (usually followed by in, out, away, etc.).

  3. to pass or fall gradually into a specified state, character, practice, etc.

  4. to decline or decrease: Interest rates are beginning to slide.

  5. Baseball. (of a base runner) to cast oneself, usually feet first, forward along the ground in the direction of the base being approached, to present less of a target for a baseman attempting to make a tag.

verb (used with object),slid [slid], /slɪd/, slid or slid·den [slid-n], /ˈslɪd n/, slid·ing.
  1. to cause to slide, slip, or coast, as over a surface or with a smooth, gliding motion.

  2. to hand, pass along, or slip (something) easily or quietly (usually followed by in, into, etc.): to slide a note into someone's hand.

noun
  1. an act or instance of sliding.

  2. a smooth surface for sliding on, especially a type of chute in a playground.

  1. an object intended to slide.

  2. Geology.

    • a landslide or the like.

    • the mass of matter sliding down.

  3. a single transparency, object, or image for projection in a projector, as a lantern slide.

  4. Photography. a small positive color transparency mounted for projection on a screen or magnification through a viewer.

  5. a usually rectangular plate of glass on which objects are placed for microscopic examination.

  6. Furniture. a shelf sliding into the body of a piece when not in use.

  7. Music.

    • an embellishment consisting of an upward or downward series of three or more tones, the last of which is the principal tone.

    • a portamento.

    • a U-shaped section of the tube of an instrument of the trumpet class, as the trombone, that can be pushed in or out to alter the length of the air column and change the pitch.

  8. a vehicle mounted on runners, for conveying loads, as of grain or wood, especially over a level surface.

  9. (of a machine or mechanism)

    • a moving part working on a track, channel, or guide rails.

    • the surface, track, channel, or guide rails on which the part moves.

  10. any of various chutes used in logging, mining, or materials handling.

  11. a flat or very low-heeled, backless shoe or slipper that can be slipped on and off the foot easily.

Idioms about slide

  1. let slide, to allow to deteriorate, pursue a natural course, etc., without intervention on one's part: to let things slide.

Origin of slide

1
First recorded before 950; Middle English sliden (verb), Old English slīdan; cognate with Middle Low German slīden,Middle High German slīten; akin to sled

synonym study For slide

1. Slide, glide, slip suggest movement over a smooth surface. Slide suggests a movement of one surface over another in contact with it: to slide downhill. Glide suggests a continuous, smooth, easy, and (usually) noiseless motion: a skater gliding over the ice. To slip is to slide in a sudden or accidental way: to slip on the ice and fall.

Other words for slide

Other words from slide

  • slid·a·ble, adjective
  • slid·a·ble·ness, noun
  • outslide, verb (used with object), out·slid, out·slid or out·slid·den, out·slid·ing.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use slide in a sentence

  • These frames fitted into grooves so that they could be slid back and forth, and in warm weather the windows were always left open.

    Our Little Korean Cousin | H. Lee M. Pike
  • Gently it slid across the oblong of sunlight, blotting out the figures of the two men from her sight.

    Bella Donna | Robert Hichens
  • It appeared in isolated patches over the water, and then these patches slid together and a white wall advanced upon us.

    Three More John Silence Stories | Algernon Blackwood
  • At last Ibrahim pulled up his donkey, and slid off, drawing his djelabieh together with his brown hands.

    Bella Donna | Robert Hichens
  • Stanley Hall also went for pastime, and Billy Towler slid into the boat like an eel, without leave, just as it pushed off.

British Dictionary definitions for slide

slide

/ (slaɪd) /


verbslides, sliding, slid (slɪd), slid or slidden (ˈslɪdən)
  1. to move or cause to move smoothly along a surface in continual contact with it: doors that slide open; children sliding on the ice

  2. (intr) to lose grip or balance: he slid on his back

  1. (intr; usually foll by into, out of, away from, etc) to pass or move gradually and unobtrusively: she slid into the room

  2. (intr usually foll by into) to go (into a specified condition) by degrees, unnoticeably, etc: he slid into loose living

  3. (foll by in, into, etc) to move (an object) unobtrusively or (of an object) to move in this way: he slid the gun into his pocket

  4. (intr) music to execute a portamento

  5. let slide to allow to follow a natural course, esp one leading to deterioration: to let things slide

noun
  1. the act or an instance of sliding

  2. a smooth surface, as of ice or mud, for sliding on

  1. a construction incorporating an inclined smooth slope for sliding down in playgrounds, etc

  2. rowing a sliding seat in a boat or its runners

  3. a thin glass plate on which specimens are mounted for microscopic study

  4. Also called: transparency a positive photograph on a transparent base, mounted in a cardboard or plastic frame or between glass plates, that can be viewed by means of a slide projector

  5. Also called: hair slide mainly British an ornamental clip to hold hair in place: US and Canadian name: barrette

  6. machinery

    • a sliding part or member

    • the track, guide, or channel on or in which such a part slides

  7. music

    • the sliding curved tube of a trombone that is moved in or out to allow the production of different harmonic series and a wider range of notes

    • a portamento

  8. music

    • a metal or glass tube placed over a finger held against the frets of a guitar to produce a portamento

    • the style of guitar playing using a slide: See also bottleneck (def. 3)

  9. geology

    • the rapid downward movement of a large mass of earth, rocks, etc, caused by erosion, faulting, etc

    • the mass of material involved in this descent: See also landslide

Origin of slide

1
Old English slīdan; related to slidor slippery, sliderian to slither, Middle High German slīten

Derived forms of slide

  • slidable, adjective
  • slider, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for slide

slide

[ slīd ]


  1. A mass movement of earth, rocks, snow, or ice down a slope. Slides can be caused by an accumulation of new matter or of moisture in the overlying material, or by erosion within or below the material. They are often triggered by an earthquake or other disturbance such as an explosion.

  2. The mass of material resulting from such a process.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Other Idioms and Phrases with slide

slide

see let ride (slide); let slip (slide).

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.