adjective
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characterized by, covered with, containing, secreting, or resembling slime
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offensive or repulsive
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characterized by servility
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Etymology
Origin of slimy
Middle English word dating back to 1350–1400; see origin at slime, -y 1
Explanation
A slimy slug is fun, but a slimy person is tricky. Slimy means either sticky and wet, or dishonest and rude. A creep who sells broken wheelchairs while smiling is slimy. Slime is a moist and clammy substance, like the stuff a snail leaves behind or the mucus that comes out of your nose. Anything that's slimy is like slime, so it's a good word for describing gross substances. If your oatmeal is slimy, it's less than appetizing, and if a pond is slimy, you probably won't want to swim in it. Figuratively, slimy also means "evil" or "despicable."
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:
In the weeks since the Reflecting Pool’s makeover went south, many have seized what is a rich and slimy opportunity for metaphor.
From Slate ● Jun. 27, 2026
"I can't think of anything in American cooking that's common with that slimy texture."
From Barron's ● Jun. 22, 2026
I don’t want to ruin this friendship, but it feels slimy.
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 24, 2026
Understanding how this molecular gearbox works could help researchers develop ways to stop bacteria from forming biofilms, slimy communities that cause infections and contaminate medical devices.
From Science Daily ● Mar. 13, 2026
Today there was just the small yellow pool splattering slimy bubbles, and the rocks around—too hot to touch, hissing steam from every crack.
From "Nim’s Island" by Wendy Orr
But Mendoza’s ascent to the analyst role has triggered enough bile from some of the slimier precincts of social media that Mendoza avoids Twitter except to seek baseball-related news, and rarely reads comments about herself.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 26, 2022
Not everything worked in the film, a darker, slimier spinoff adjacent to Sony Pictures’ “Spider-verse” Marvel world.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 28, 2021
Even with Jim Bakker, who was the much slimier character, there’s a sense that every time you see him, he’s not twirling the metaphorical mustache.
From Washington Post ● Sep. 15, 2021
Who am I to begrudge anyone for seeking out joy in the midst of a pandemic even if that joy starts with a slimier, sweatier depiction of another pandemic?
From Salon ● Dec. 18, 2020
The detective grew dirtier and slimier and wetter as the day wore on; but still he did not lose heart.
From Henry Dunbar A Novel by Braddon, M. E. (Mary Elizabeth)
A great piece in the WSJ today from reporters Thomas Grove and Alan Cullison illustrates one of the slimiest realities of life in Washington.
From Fox News ● Nov. 8, 2019
The five-year stretch from 1984 to 1989, from Ghostbusters to Ghostbusters 2, was the slimiest in American history.
From Slate ● Jul. 18, 2016
“They are the slimiest fish you’ve ever seen in your life,” says Odenkirk.
From Washington Post ● Apr. 29, 2013
Made by Native Instruments, it's a synthesizer plug-in that sits in a producer's laptop or digital audio workstation and allows him or her to slather different synth-textures together to make the sickest, slimiest bassline.
From The Guardian ● Aug. 2, 2012
The flower beds had shriveled up and were crawling with the fattest, slimiest slugs I'd ever seen.
From "City of the Plague God" by Sarwat Chadda
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.
