slog
Americanverb (used with object)
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to hit hard, as in boxing or cricket; slug.
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to drive with blows.
verb (used without object)
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to deal heavy blows.
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to walk or plod heavily.
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to toil.
noun
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a long, tiring walk or march.
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long, laborious work.
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a heavy blow.
verb
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to hit with heavy blows, as in boxing
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(intr) to work hard; toil
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(intr; foll by down, up, along, etc) to move with difficulty; plod
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cricket to score freely by taking large swipes at the ball
noun
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a tiring hike or walk
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long exhausting work
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a heavy blow or swipe
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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slogsimple
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slogssimple
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have sloggedperfect
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has sloggedperfect
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am sloggingprogressive
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are sloggingprogressive
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is sloggingprogressive
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have been sloggingperfect progressive
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has been sloggingperfect progressive
Past
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sloggedsimple
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had sloggedperfect
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was sloggingprogressive
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were sloggingprogressive
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had been sloggingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of slog
First recorded in 1850–55; variant of slug 2
Explanation
When you slog, you toil at something, working hard and often slowly to get a difficult job done. You might slog with your shovel through the pile of snow in your driveway. A worker might slog through a pile of papers on her desk, or slog long and hard on a construction crew. In either case, the job requires persistence and determination. Another way to slog is to walk with difficulty, the way someone might slog along a muddy road to the gas station after getting a flat tire. The original meaning of slog was "hit hard," possibly as a variation of slug.
Vocabulary lists containing slog
Labor Day Lexicon: Words That Put You To Work
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The Odyssey
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Out of the Dust
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Curran was promoted to five and played nicely for his 26 before he poked behind, and Buttler was bowled trying to slog Axar Patel.
From BBC ● Jul. 16, 2026
The slog of tallying up votes in California continued Friday as some races hang in the ballots.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 5, 2026
You’d think such a long trip, with no one to chat with in the passenger seat, would be a slog, but the driving days went by faster than I would have expected.
From Salon ● Jun. 1, 2026
None of this has changed the parts of my work that I actually liked before or felt were valuable to my process to slog through.
From Slate ● May 24, 2026
He stopped again, the other miners passing us by at a hard slog, the shift-change hour approaching.
From "October Sky" by Homer Hickam
Jordan said in an interview that he intended to closely focus on Domino’s operations as the pizza sector slogs through years of anemic growth.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 22, 2026
Nevertheless, it is important to remember that this isn’t yet a foregone conclusion by any means—and that there are multiple uphill slogs ahead for PSWBD.
From Slate ● Feb. 27, 2026
His first runs came off the inside edge but afterwards he cleanly struck another nine fours and three sixes as he targeted the leg side without resorting to slogs.
From BBC ● Jun. 3, 2025
His relentless pressure has keyed a defense that’s carrying the two-time defending conference champions while their offense slogs along.
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 17, 2023
The entire procession slogs past at little more than walking speed.
From "All the Light We Cannot See" by Anthony Doerr
Jacob Bethell was lbw playing no shot and Stokes' probable successor Harry Brook slogged 21 before holing out.
From BBC ● Jun. 28, 2026
Musk says he slogged through “production hell” in 2017 and nearly ran out of money as Tesla struggled to mass-produce its new Model 3 sedan.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 8, 2026
Brook was fortunate to survive on 45 when he slogged Starc and the ball dropped between three chasing fielders.
From Barron's ● Jan. 4, 2026
“And Just Like That” already slogged through this withered territory via Steve and Miranda in what may be the show’s most realistic depiction of two people giving up on each other.
From Salon ● May 29, 2025
So Jesse slogged on, still holding off on a final decision, understanding the long odds.
From "Geeks: How Two Lost Boys Rode the Internet Out of Idaho" by Jon Katz
Having looked scratchy early on, Dunkley found her groove by slogging Kathryn Bryce over mid-wicket for six in the third over.
From BBC ● Jun. 20, 2026
Another former major winner is currently slogging through a longer road back.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 16, 2026
The experienced leg-spinner's googly may have been well studied by opposition batters, but it remains a potent weapon, as Sri Lanka captain Dasun Shanaka discovered when he was trapped lbw slogging to leg.
From BBC ● Feb. 1, 2026
The Chargers’ need for depth at linebacker was underscored by Junior Colson slogging through hamstring and ankle injuries as a rookie last year, and Del’Shawn Phillips just coming off the physically unable to perform list.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 24, 2025
Their small party found themselves slogging through a smooth, unbroken expanse of white that came halfway up their calves.
From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
