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go-slow

American  
[goh-sloh] / ˈgoʊˌsloʊ /

noun

Chiefly British.
  1. a work slowdown, as in sympathy with strikers or as a protest.


go-slow British  

noun

  1. US and Canadian equivalent: slowdown

    1. a deliberate slackening of the rate of production by organized labour as a tactic in industrial conflict

    2. ( as modifier )

      go-slow tactics

"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

verb

  1. (intr) to work deliberately slowly as a tactic in industrial conflict

"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

Etymology

Origin of go-slow

First recorded in 1925–30

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:

The longer the BOJ persists in its go-slow approach, the more dangerous the currency market becomes.

From The Wall Street Journal Aug. 3, 2026

Two activist groups have called on farmers to drive their tractors to Westminster for a "go-slow" protest.

From BBC Mar. 25, 2024

“The risks are really two-sided here,” he said on Wednesday, though he saw the go-slow risk as doing “unnecessary harm to employment.”

From New York Times Mar. 21, 2024

In a related development, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on Monday established a go-slow zone for ships off Atlantic City to protect the critically endangered North American right whale.

From Seattle Times Nov. 20, 2023

The guards immediately saw this and threatened us, but we would not increase our pace, and we continued this go-slow strategy for as long as we worked in the courtyard.

From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela

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