/slaʃ/, /slæʃ/
OriginLate Middle English, originally a verb of uncertain etymology. Perhaps of imitative origin, or possibly from Old French esclachier (“to break in pieces”), a variant of esclater, which is likely a Germanic borrowing, from Frankish *slaitan (“to slit, tear”).
Used in the Wycliffe Bible as slascht (see 1 Kings 5:18) but otherwise unattested until 16th century. Conjunctive use from various applications of the punctuation mark ⟨/⟩. See also slash fiction.
- A swift, broad cutting stroke, especially one made with an edged weapon or whip.
“A slash of his blade just missed my ear.”
- A wide striking motion made with an implement such as a cricket bat, hockey stick, or lacrosse stick.
“He took a wild slash at the ball but the captain saved the team's skin by hacking it clear and setting up the team for a strike on the goal.”
- figurativelyA sharp reduction in resources allotted.
“After the war ended, the army saw a 50% slash in their operating budget.”
- A deep cut or laceration, as made by an edged weapon or whip.
“He was bleeding from a slash across his cheek.”
- A deep taper-pointed incision in a plant.
- A slit in an outer garment, usually exposing a lining or inner garment of a contrasting color or design.
- Canada, USA clearing in a forest, particularly one made by logging, fire, or other violent action.
“We passed over the shoulder of a ridge and around the edge of a fire slash, and then we had the mountain fairly before us.”
- The slash mark: the punctuation mark ⟨/⟩.
“Initial inquiries among professional typists uncover names like slant, slant line, slash, and slash mark. Examination of typing instruction manuals discloses additional names such as diagonal and diag”
- often, proscribedAny similar typographical mark, such as the backslash ⟨\⟩.
- broadly, idiomaticThe conjunctions and or also (during a conversation).
- Canada, USThe loose woody debris remaining from a slash; the trimmings left while preparing felled trees for removal.
“Slash generated during logging may constitute a fire hazard.”
- obsoleteA wet or swampy place overgrown with bushes
- slangSlash fiction; fan fiction focused on homoerotic pairing of fictional characters.
“Comments merely allow readers to proclaim themselves mortally offended by the content of a story, despite having been warned in large block letters of INCEST or SLASH (any kind of sex between two men ”
- obsolete, rareA drink of something; a draft.
- Eastern, USA swampy area; a swamp.
“On the North side of one of ye Windings of a great Slash or Swamp called ye Roundabout.”
“three acres one Rood and Six pole of Land … Extending Northward along the Ditch thirty six poles and two fifths of a pole to a slash called Pitch and Tar Slash or Swamp[,] then along that Slash till i”
“720 acres "lying in the Forrest between Rappahannock and Mattapony river". Adjoins Goldman's land, the line of Robins by and old Indian path in a slash, the land of Majr Robert Beverley, deceased.”
- Eastern, US, uncommonA slash pine, which grows in such (swampy) areas.
“[…] second growth long-leaf yellow slash. And also we have a short-leaf pine.”
“Slash pine (Pinus caribaea Morelet) / Slash pine is also known as yellow slash, swamp pine, hill slash, and Cuban pine.]”
- ScotlandA large quantity of watery food such as broth.
- To cut with a swift broad stroke of an edged weapon.
“They slashed at him with their swords, but only managed to nick one of his fingers.”
“She hacked and slashed her way across the jungle.”
- To produce a similar wound with a savage strike of a whip.
- To strike swiftly and laterally with a hockey stick, usually across another player's arms or legs.
- figurativelyTo reduce sharply.
“Competition forced them to slash prices.”
“Profits are only up right now because they slashed overhead, but employee morale and product quality have collapsed too.”
- To create slashes in a garment.
- figurativelyTo criticize cuttingly.
- To strike violently and randomly, particularly
- To swing wildly at the ball.
- To move quickly and violently.
- To crack a whip with a slashing motion.
- Canada, USTo clear land, (particularly forestry) with violent action such as logging or brushfires or (agriculture, uncommon) through grazing.
“The province's traditional slash-and-burn agriculture was only sustainable with a much smaller population.”
- intransitive, slangTo write slash fiction.
“Having read slash for other fandoms (mainly X-Files and Sentinel), I can say the whole gay issue gets dealt with more often in that slash than it does in Trek slash. That's not to say that all the sla”
- UK, intransitive, slangTo piss, to urinate.
“If you can slash in my bed (I thought) don't tell me you can't suck my cock.”
- Scotland, intransitiveTo work in wet conditions.
- not-comparableUsed to note the sound or action of a slash.
- Canada, USUsed to connect two or more identities in a list.
“Saul Hudson is a famous musician/songwriter.”
“What this, the Slashie, means is that you consider me the best actor slash model and not the other way around.”
““It’s been a joke-slash-tragedy,” the restaurant host, 29, said of the president’s tumultuous far-right administration as she cast her vote against him in her country’s most important election in deca”
- Canada, USUsed to list alternatives.
“Alternatives can be marked by the slash/stroke/solidus punctuation mark, a tall, right-slanting oblique line.
Read: Alternatives can be marked by the slash-slash-stroke-slash-solidus punctuation mark,”
Formsslashes(plural) · slashes(present, singular, third-person) · slashing(participle, present) · slashed(participle, past) · slashed(past)