slick

[slik]

adjective

slicker, slickest 

1. smooth and glossy; sleek.

2. smooth in manners, speech, etc.; suave.

3. sly; shrewdly adroit.

   He's a slick customer, all right.

   Synonyms: superficial, shallow, glib, sharp, foxy, tricky, wily

4. ingenious; cleverly devised.

   a slick plan to get out of work.

5. slippery, especially from being covered with or as if with ice, water, or oil.

6. deftly executed and having surface appeal or sophistication, but shallow or glib in content; polished but superficial.

   a writer who has mastered every formula of slick fiction.

7. Slang.,  wonderful; fantastic; first-rate.

noun

1. a smooth or slippery place or spot or the substance causing it.

   oil slick.

2. Informal.

   1. a magazine printed on paper having a more or less glossy finish.

   2. such a magazine regarded as possessing qualities, as expensiveness, chic, and sophistication, that hold appeal for a particular readership, as one whose members enjoy or are seeking affluence.

   3. such a magazine regarded as having a sophisticated, deftly executed, but shallow or glib literary content.

3. any woodworking chisel having a blade more than 2 inches (5 centimeters) wide.

4. any of various paddlelike tools for smoothing a surface.

5. Automotive.,  a wide tire without a tread, used in racing.

6. Military Slang.,  a helicopter.

7. Metallurgy.,  a small trowel used for smoothing the surface of a mold.

adverb

1. smoothly; cleverly.

verb (used with object)

1. to make sleek or smooth.

2. to use a slicker on (skins or hides).

3. Informal.,  to spruce up; make smart or fine (usually followed byup ).

slick

/ slɪk /

adjective

1. flattering and glib

   a slick salesman

2. adroitly devised or executed

   a slick show

3. informal,  shrewd; sly

4. informal,  superficially attractive

   a slick publication

5. smooth and glossy; slippery

noun

1. a slippery area, esp a patch of oil floating on water

2. a chisel or other tool used for smoothing or polishing a surface

3. the tyre of a racing car that has worn treads

verb

1. to make smooth or sleek

2. informal,  (usually foll by up) to smarten or tidy (oneself)

3. (often foll by up) to make smooth or glossy

Other Word Forms

• slickly adverb
• slickness noun
• unslicked adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of slick¹

First recorded before 900 for the verb, 1350–1400 for the adjective; Middle English verb slicke(n), Old English (nīw)slīcod “(newly) polished”; Middle English adjective slik(e), slyk(e), from unrecorded Old English slice; cognate with dialectal Dutch sleek “even, smooth”; noun derivative of the verb or adjective; adverb derivative of the adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of slick¹

C14: probably of Scandinavian origin; compare Icelandic, Norwegian slikja to be or make smooth

Example Sentences

Bradley changed nothing from the usual approach of short rough, thick grass around the greens and slick putting surfaces.

From BBC

A childhood Liverpool fan, she used to run around the house in a replica shirt, her curly hair slicked back to resemble Spanish striker Fernando Torres.

From BBC

On this afternoon, he is dressed in black, auburn hair slicked back.

From Los Angeles Times

It may not even be autumn, but already, meteorologists are forecasting slick, icy roads in Park City, Utah, next January.

From Salon

“Off and on again showers to continue as well, with isolated thunderstorms. Expect slick roads.”

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• deft 
• glib 
• sharp 
• shrewd 
• skillful 
• sly 
• smooth 
• sophisticated