slither

[slith -er]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR slither ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used without object)

to slide down or along a surface, especially unsteadily, from side to side, or with some friction or noise: The box slithered down the chute.

to go or walk with a sliding motion: The snake slithered across the path.

verb (used with object)

to cause to slither or slide.

noun

a slithering movement; slide.

Origin of slither

1150–1200; Middle English slitheren, variant of sliddren, Old English slid(e)rian, frequentative of slīdan to slide; see -er⁶

Related formsslith·er·y, adjective

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

Related Words for slithering

glide, slink, sneak, wriggle, crawl, skid, move, glissade, coast, skate, snake, slip, cower, gumshoe, lurk, meander, prowl, pussyfoot, shirk, sidle

Examples from the Web for slithering

Contemporary Examples of slithering

He was slithering downward, bored, lonely, erratic, sending out thousands of text messages.
Derek Boogaard: The Player Hockey Hooked by Feeding Him Painkillers
Buzz Bissinger
June 7, 2012
There are an estimated 30,000 of them, slithering through Miami and surrounding counties.
The Great Python Hunt
Catharine Skipp
February 26, 2010
Lately, the pythons are slithering out of border wildlife areas, and into farmland.
The Great Python Hunt
Catharine Skipp
February 26, 2010

Historical Examples of slithering

A squeaking and slithering, now greater than ever, rose above all other sounds.
Astounding Stories of Super-Science, June, 1930
Various
Now, what will that chap be doing there, slithering about over the water?
The Ocean Cat's Paw
George Manville Fenn
He heard the slithering sound of Lorenzo's sword being drawn.
The Saracen: Land of the Infidel
Robert Shea
Out of the silence came the slithering step of some one walking in the sand.
Overland Red
Henry Herbert Knibbs
Dragging his pony to a slithering halt, he leaped to the ground.
Steve Yeager
William MacLeod Raine

British Dictionary definitions for slithering

slither

verb

to move or slide or cause to move or slide unsteadily, as on a slippery surface

(intr) to travel with a sliding motion

noun

a slithering motion

Word Origin for slither

Old English slidrian, from slīdan to slide

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

Word Origin and History for slithering

slither

early 15c., variant of Middle English slidder "to slip, slide," from Old English slidrian "to slip, slide on a loose slope," a frequentative form of slidan "to slide" (see slide (v.)). For spelling change, cf. gather. Meaning "to walk in a sliding manner" is attested from 1848. In reference to reptile motion, attested from 1839. Related: Slithered; slithering.

slither

"slithering movement," 1861, from slither (v.).