slake

[ sleyk ]

/ sleɪk /

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verb (used with object), slaked, slak·ing.

to allay (thirst, desire, wrath, etc.) by satisfying.

to cool or refresh: He slaked his lips with ice.

to make less active, vigorous, intense, etc.: His calm manner slaked their enthusiasm.

to cause disintegration of (lime) by treatment with water.Compare slaked lime.

Obsolete. to make loose or less tense; slacken.

verb (used without object), slaked, slak·ing.

(of lime) to become slaked.

Archaic. to become less active, intense, vigorous, etc.; abate.

Nearby words

slag cement, slag down, slag heap, slaggy, slain, slake, slaked lime, slaker, slalom, slam, slam dance

Origin of slake

before 1000; Middle English slaken to mitigate, allay, moderate, lessen one's efforts, Old English slacian to slacken, lessen one's efforts, equivalent to slæc slack¹ + -ian causative verb suffix

SYNONYMS FOR slake

1 satisfy, quench, gratify, relieve.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR slake ON THESAURUS.COM

Related forms

slak·a·ble, slake·a·ble, adjectiveslake·less, adjectiveun·slak·a·ble, adjectiveun·slake·a·ble, adjective

un·slaked, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for slake

"Only for two days," said Charlotte, trying to slake the flame she had raised.
Handy Andy, Volume 2 (of 2)|Samuel Lover
Possibly the sailor–like individual in the small boat could slake his thirst for knowledge.
The Message|Louis Tracy
Thousands of hands are stretched forth to grasp those apples of Tantalus, but whose thirst did they ever slake?
The Village Notary|Jzsef Etvs
There were no trees to give the men shade, or springs to slake their thirst.
A Soldier's Life|Edwin G. Rundle

The sweat of our brows no longer suffices to slake their thirst.
The Pocket Bible or Christian the Printer|Eugne Sue

British Dictionary definitions for slake

slake

/ (sleɪk) /

verb

(tr) literary to satisfy (thirst, desire, etc)

(tr) poetic to cool or refresh

Also: slack to undergo or cause to undergo the process in which lime reacts with water or moist air to produce calcium hydroxide

archaic to make or become less active or intense

Derived Forms

slakable or slakeable, adjectiveslaker, noun

Word Origin for slake

Old English slacian, from slæc slack 1; related to Dutch slaken to diminish, Icelandic slaka

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