SYNONYMS FOR slack
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Idioms for slack
- to pull in or make taut a loose section of a rope, line, wire, etc.: Take up the slack before releasing the kite.
- to provide or compensate for something that is missing or incomplete: New sources of oil will take up the slack resulting from the embargo.
take up the slack,
Origin of slack
1First recorded before 900; Middle English slac (adjective), Old English sleac, slæc; cognate with Old Norse slakr, Old High German slach, Latin laxuslax
OTHER WORDS FROM slack
Definition for slack (2 of 2)
slack2
[ slak ]
/ slæk /
noun
the fine screenings of coal.
Origin of slack
21400–50; late Middle English sleck<Middle Dutch slacke,slecke
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Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021
Example sentences from the Web for slack
British Dictionary definitions for slack (1 of 2)
See also slacks
Derived forms of slack
slackly, adverbslackness, nounWord Origin for slack
Old English slæc, sleac; related to Old High German slah, Old Norse slākr bad, Latin laxus lax
British Dictionary definitions for slack (2 of 2)
slack2
/ (slæk) /
noun
small pieces of coal with a high ash content
Word Origin for slack
C15: probably from Middle Low German slecke; related to Dutch slak, German Schlacke dross
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
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