slink away

Idioms

Also, slink off. Depart furtively, as in The shoplifter slipped an item into his coat pocket and slunk away, or After that severe scolding, she slunk off. This term employs slink in the sense of “move stealthily,” a usage dating from the late 1300s.

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.

“Upon encountering humans, the snakes’ first inclination is to slink away, but they will strike if suddenly disturbed or cornered,” a 1991 Times report said.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 23, 2026

“It’s a little bit like herding cats sometimes,” Kramer said of keeping volunteers from trying to slink away.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 25, 2025

Do you slink away and count on the courts to sort it out?

From Salon • May 13, 2025

"I tried to slink away and he was reeling me back," Annie says.

From BBC • Mar. 30, 2025

Maybe she recognized the sound' of my voice, but anyway, before I can excuse myself and slink away, the little girl throws her arms around me and buries her face in my middle.

From "How It Went Down" by Kekla Magoon

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023