slack
The part of anything that hangs loose, having no strain upon itThe part of anything that hangs loose, having no strain upon it.
» We need to cut Tom some slack.
Нам потрібно дати Тому поблажку.
Нам треба легше з Томом.
Meaning
9 senses(uncountable)The part of anything that hangs loose, having no strain upon it.
the slack of a rope or of a sail
take in the slack
Schlacke
слабина́slabiná, у́гольная пы́льúgolʹnaja pýlʹ
(countable, uncountable)A dip in a surface.
(countable, uncountable)In particular, a shallow dell or hollow; a dip in the surface of terrain, such as between hills.
Marsch, Senke
(countable)A low-lying marsh or a pool, especially a tidal or intermittent one which periodically fills and drains.
(uncountable)Unconditional listening attention given by client to patient.
A temporary speed restriction where track maintenance or engineering work is being carried out at a particular place.
(countable)A valley, or small, shallow dell; a sag or saddle in a ridge.
A flat-bottomed, hollow zone within a sand-dune system that has developed over impervious strata, sometimes due to erosion or blow-out of the dune system; its flat base level is therefore close to or at the permanent water-table level, and therefore has rich, marshy flora, with Salix species (willows) as typical woody colonisers.
(uncountable)Small coal; coal dust.
dust consisting of a mixture of small coal fragments and coal dust and dirt that sifts out when coal is passed over a sieve
Examples
74 sentencesWe need to cut Tom some slack.
Нам потрібно дати Тому поблажку. — deniko
Tom didn't cut Mary any slack.
ruТом не давал Мэри ни единой поблажки. — sharptoothed
You should cut Tom some slack.
Why don't you cut Tom some slack?
deWarum bist du bei Tom nicht etwas nachsichtig? — Tamy
Why don't we cut Tom some slack?
ruПочему бы нам не быть снисходительней к Тому? — Ooneykcall
Translations
5 languagesBy meaning 2
By meaning 3
Origin
From Middle English slak, from Old English slæc (“slack”), from Proto-Germanic *slakaz. FoFrom Middle English slak, from Old English slæc (“slack”), from Proto-Germanic *slakaz. For sense of coal dust, compare slag.
Either from the adjective in Etymology 1 or the verb in Etymology 2.
From Middle English slak, from Old Norse slakki (“a slope”). Cognate with Icelandic slakki, Norwegian slakke.
Of unknown origin. Possibly related to Middle Dutch slacke or Middle Low German slecke. Doublet of slag.
Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Forms
plural: slacksSynonyms
12 synonyms- the quality of being loose (not taut):slackness
- a stretch of water without current or movement:slack water
- a noticeable deterioration in performance or quality:slumpdrop-offfallofffalling off
- a soft wet area of low-lying land that sinks underfoot:mirequagmirequagmorass
Word family
3 related wordsLessons for this word
1 lessons- A1Countable and uncountable nouns — Because it can be uncountable