slough

[ slou for 1, 2, 4; sloo for 3 ]

/ slaʊ for 1, 2, 4; slu for 3 /

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See synonyms for slough on Thesaurus.com

noun

an area of soft, muddy ground; swamp or swamplike region.

a hole full of mire, as in a road.

Also slew, slue .Northern U.S. and Canadian. a marshy or reedy pool, pond, inlet, backwater, or the like.

a condition of degradation, despair, or helplessness.

QUIZZES

QUIZ YOURSELF ON “THEIR,” “THERE,” AND “THEY’RE”

Are you aware how often people swap around “their,” “there,” and “they’re”? Prove you have more than a fair grasp over these commonly confused words.

Question 1 of 7

Which one of these commonly confused words can act as an adverb or a pronoun?

their

there

they're

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of slough

before 900; Middle English; Old English slōh; cognate with Middle Low German slōch, Middle High German sluoche “ditch”

Definition for slough (2 of 2)

slough²

or sluff

[ sluhf ]

/ slʌf /

noun

the outer layer of the skin of a snake, which is cast off periodically.

Pathology. a mass or layer of dead tissue separated from the surrounding or underlying tissue.

anything that is shed or cast off.

Cards. a discard.

verb (used without object)

to be or become shed or cast off, as the slough of a snake.

to cast off a slough.

Pathology. to separate from the sound flesh, as a slough.

Cards. to discard a card or cards.

verb (used with object)

to dispose or get rid of; cast (often followed by off): to slough off a bad habit.

to shed as or like a slough.

Cards. to discard (cards).

Verb Phrases

slough over, to treat as slight or trivial: to slough over a friend's mistake.

SYNONYMS FOR slough

6 molt.

See synonyms for slough on Thesaurus.com

Origin of slough

1250–1300; Middle English slughe, slouh skin of a snake; cognate with German Schlauch skin, bag

OTHER WORDS FROM slough

slough·i·ness, nounsloughy, adjectiveun·sloughed, adjectiveun·slough·ing, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021

Example sentences from the Web for slough

In Alabama, Cobbs says he has the best luck with small feeder streams and shallow, backwater sloughs.
Don’t have a boat? Try bowfishing.|By Natalie Krebs/Outdoor Life|November 3, 2020|Popular Science
But she does offer a brief reprieve for those nostalgic for a cultural era that appears to be sloughing away before our eyes.
The Book on Aging Rockers|Jane Ciabattari|June 29, 2010|DAILY BEAST
Some of the colonial ornamental details about porches and roof were sloughing off or had already disappeared.
The Yates Pride|Mary E. Wilkins Freeman
The gangrenous variety begins with coldness and weakness of the extremities followed by gangrene and sloughing.
Scientific American Supplement, No. 392, July 7, 1883|Various

It will be better for sloughing off these florid adornments.
Summer Days in Shakespeare Land|Charles G. Harper
The dirt kept sloughing down on us, and we had really gone in too far for our own safety, but the laymen cared little for that.
The Trail of '98|Robert W. Service
Care must be taken not to fix the blade too far on the anterior flap, or it will lead to subsequent sloughing of the bladder.
A System of Operative Surgery, Volume IV (of 4)|Various

British Dictionary definitions for slough (1 of 3)

slough¹

/ (slaʊ) /

noun

a hollow filled with mud; bog

(sluː) US and Canadian

(in the prairies) a large hole where water collects or the water in such a hole
(in the northwest) a sluggish side channel of a river
(on the Pacific coast) a marshy saltwater inlet

despair or degradation

Derived forms of slough

sloughy, adjective

Word Origin for slough

Old English slōh; related to Middle High German sluoche ditch, Swedish slaga swamp

British Dictionary definitions for slough (2 of 3)

slough²

/ (slʌf) /

noun

any outer covering that is shed, such as the dead outer layer of the skin of a snake, the cellular debris in a wound, etc

Also: sluff bridge a discarded card

verb

(often foll by off) to shed (a skin, etc) or (of a skin, etc) to be shed

Also: sluff bridge to discard (a card or cards)

Derived forms of slough

sloughy, adjective

Word Origin for slough

C13: of Germanic origin; compare Middle Low German slū husk, German Schlauch hose, Norwegian slō fleshy part of a horn

British Dictionary definitions for slough (3 of 3)

Slough

/ (slaʊ) /

noun

an industrial town in SE central England, in Slough unitary authority, Berkshire; food products, high-tech industries. Pop: 126 276 (2001)

a unitary authority in SE central England, in Berkshire. Pop: 118 800 (2003 est). Area: 28 sq km (11 sq miles)

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

Medical definitions for slough

slough

[ slŭf ]

n.

A layer or mass of dead tissue separated from surrounding living tissue, as in a wound, a sore, or an inflammation.

v.

To separate from surrounding living tissue. Used of dead tissue.

Scientific definitions for slough

slough

[ slŭf ]

Noun

The dead outer skin shed by a reptile or an amphibian.

Verb

To shed an outer layer of skin.

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slough

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QUIZ YOURSELF ON “THEIR,” “THERE,” AND “THEY’RE”

Origin of slough