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• slow motion
  slow motion

  noun

  the process or technique of filming or taping a motion-picture or television sequence at an accelerated rate of speed and then projecting or replaying it at normal speed so that the action appears to be slowed down.
• slow-motion
  slow-motion

  adjective

  of, pertaining to or made in slow motion.

slow motion

¹ American  

noun

1. the process or technique of filming or taping a motion-picture or television sequence at an accelerated rate of speed and then projecting or replaying it at normal speed so that the action appears to be slowed down.

2. the effect thus created.

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slow-motion ² American  

[sloh-moh-shuhn] / ˈsloʊˈmoʊ ʃən /

adjective

1. of, pertaining to or made in slow motion.

   a slow-motion replay.

2. moving or proceeding at a strikingly slow rate.

   slow-motion progress toward a settlement.

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slow motion British  

noun

1. films television action that is made to appear slower than normal by passing the film through the taking camera at a faster rate than normal or by replaying a video tape recording more slowly

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adjective

1. films television of or relating to such action

2. moving or functioning at less than usual speed

Etymology

Origin of slow motion¹

First recorded in 1920–25

Origin of slow-motion²

First recorded in 1925–30

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

slow motion slow-motion

Ms. Browne’s original account of that period proceeded accordingly, as if in slow motion.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026

That said, watching the sweet-and-sour sauce flying in slow motion is actually quite amusing.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 29, 2026

With piles of snow at every intersection and pedestrians moving in slow motion, I regularly bolted ahead and mounted obstacles like a fullback rushing for glory, leaving Sarah somewhere behind.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 9, 2026

It believes that too much stock has been placed on the slow motion replay.

From BBC ● Jan. 19, 2026

The basketball superstar Larry Bird used to say that at critical moments in the game, the court would go quiet and the players would seem to be moving in slow motion.

From "Blink" by Malcolm Gladwell

By the end it does manage to suggest — with the team walking four abreast toward the camera in slow-motion — a workable future for the franchise.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 16, 2026

Does the slow-motion version ever tip into outright panic?

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2026

"The next thing I remember was my camera leaving my hand in slow-motion and everything goes black."

From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2026

A slow-motion collapse in South Korea’s Kospi index erased $2.5 trillion in value, burning investors who bet on the AI boom.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 25, 2026

All of us fell into a state of suspended anticipation, a slow-motion moment.

From "The Rock and the River" by Kekla Magoon

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