slippery [slip -uh -ree, slip -ree]
Examples Word Origin
See more synonyms for slippery on Thesaurus.com adjective, slip·per·i·er, slip·per·i·est. tending or liable to cause slipping or sliding, as ice, oil, a wet surface, etc.: a slippery road. tending to slip from the hold or grasp or from position: a slippery rope. likely to slip away or escape: slippery prospects. not to be depended on; fickle; shifty, tricky, or deceitful. unstable or insecure, as conditions: a slippery situation. Show More
Origin of slippery 1525–35; alteration of
slipper2 ; compare
Low German slipperig; see
-y1 Related forms slip·per·i·ness , noun non·slip·per·y , adjective un·slip·per·y , adjective Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Related Words for slipperier silky ,
polished ,
unsafe ,
icy ,
unstable ,
wet ,
glistening ,
perilous ,
greasy ,
tricky ,
elusive ,
treacherous ,
smooth ,
slick ,
unpredictable ,
shifty ,
glassy ,
glazed ,
lustrous ,
satiny Examples from the Web for slipperier Historical Examples of slipperier To me the cliff looked much like the Matterhorn, only slipperier .
But when they get to mixin' in things they're slipperier than a bunch of quicksilver.
British Dictionary definitions for slipperier causing or tending to cause objects to slip a slippery road liable to slip from the grasp, a position, etc not to be relied upon; cunning and untrustworthy a slippery character (esp of a situation) liable to change; unstable slippery slope a course of action that will lead to disaster or failure Show More
Derived Forms slipperily , adverb slipperiness , noun Word Origin for slippery C16: probably coined by Coverdale to translate German schlipfferig in Luther's Bible (Psalm 35:6); related to Old English slipor slippery
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for slipperier adj. "having a slippery surface," c.1500, from Middle English sliper (adj.) "readily slipping," from Old English slipor "slippery, having a smooth surface" (see slip (v.)) + -y (2). Metaphoric sense of "deceitful, untrustworthy" is first recorded 1550s. Related: Slipperiness . In a figurative sense, slippery slope is first attested 1844. Slippery elm (1748) so called for its mucilaginous inner bark.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
