Slay
Origin
From Middle English sleen, slayn, from Old English slēan ("to strike, beat, smite, stamp, forge, sting, slay, kill, impact"), from Proto-Germanic *slahaną ("to fight, strike, kill"), from Proto-Indo-European *slak- ("to hit, strike, throw"). Cognate with Dutch slaan ("to beat, hit, strike"), Low German slaan ("hit, strike"), German schlagen ("to beat, hit, strike (ein Schlag: a hit, a strike) "), Danish and Swedish slå ("to knock, beat, strike"), Icelandic slá ("to strike"). Related to slaughter, onslaught.
Full definition of slay
Verb
- (now literary) To kill, murder.The knight slew the dragon.Our foes must all be slain.
- (literary) To eradicate or stamp out.You must slay these thoughts.
- (by extension, colloquial) To defeat, overcome.
- 1956, “Giants Slay Bears in Pro Title Battleâ€, in Lodi News-Sentinel, 1956 December 31, page 8.
- 1985, “Redskins slay Giants; Thiesmann shatters legâ€, in The Gadsden Times, 1985 November 19, page D1-5.
- 1993, Jack Curry, “Yanks’ Bullpen Falls Short Againâ€, in The New York Times, 1993 April 21:The Yankees were actually slayed by two former Yankees because Rich Gossage pitched one scoreless inning in relief of Eckersley to notch his first victory.
- (slang) To delight or overwhelm, especially with laughter.Ha ha! You slay me!
Usage notes
The alternative past tense and past participle form "slayed" is most strongly associated with the slang sense, "to delight or overwhelm":
"Cutey, you slayed me !" grins Jackie, working fast. "I guess that's what made the rest of 'em look so bad — you was so good!"
In recent use, "slayed" is also often found associated with the other senses as well. However, this is widely considered nonstandard.
"But slayed cannot be considered established in such use. Whether it eventually becomes established remains to be seen." —
A review of US usage 2000-2009 in COCA suggests that "slayed" is increasing in popularity, but remains less common than "slew". It is very rare in UK usage (BNC).
Synonyms
- (to kill, murder) kill, murder, assassinate
- (to defeat, overcome) conquer, defeat, overcome
- (to overwhelm or delight) kill, hit it out of the park