slacks

American

[slaks] / slæks /

noun

(used with a plural verb)

men's or women's trousers for informal wear.

slacks British

/ slæks /

plural noun

informal trousers worn by both sexes

"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

Etymology

Origin of slacks

First recorded in 1815–25; slack ¹ + -s ³

Compare meaning

How does slacks compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

trousers vs. slacks

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.

Eugene Levert, chain-smoking next to a stack of books while wearing a vertical blue-striped button-down and khaki slacks, looked the scholarly mirror of Doug Lamplugh, in a horizontal blue-striped polo and khaki shorts.

From Slate • May 4, 2026

She added with a laugh that she’d brainstormed speech material the previous night while shaving her legs, despite the fact that she was outfitted in slacks at the ceremony.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 15, 2026

Still, James insisted that headquarters employees dress a cut above business casual, requiring jackets and slacks for men.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 11, 2025

Newsom also juxtaposed a clip of Hegseth’s speech with a photo of Trump in a McDonald’s restaurant, the president’s stomach protruding over the belt line of his slacks.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 1, 2025

Whipped his way through the dress shirts and slacks.

From "A Tangle of Knots" by Lisa Graff

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