• Slow

    Pronunciation

    • UK IPA: /sləʊ/
    • US IPA: /sloÊŠ/
    • Rhymes: -əʊ

    Origin

    Old English slāw. Cognate with Swedish slö.

    Full definition of slow

    Adjective

    slow

    1. Taking a long time to move or go a short distance, or to perform an action; not quick in motion; proceeding at a low speed.
      • 2013-07-20, The attack of the MOOCs, Dotcom mania was slow in coming to higher education, but now it has the venerable industry firmly in its grip. Since the launch early last year of Udacity and Coursera, two Silicon Valley start-ups offering free education through MOOCs, massive open online courses, the ivory towers of academia have been shaken to their foundations.
    2. a slow train;  a slow computer
    3. Not happening in a short time; spread over a comparatively long time.
      • John MiltonThese changes in the heavens, though slow, produced
        Like change on sea and land, sidereal blast.
      • 2013, Charles T. Ambrose, Alzheimer’s Disease, Similar studies of rats have employed four different intracranial resorbable, slow sustained release systems—surgical foam, a thermal gel depot, a microcapsule or biodegradable polymer beads.
    4. Of reduced intellectual capacity; not quick to comprehend.
      John is very slow; he is ten seconds behind everybody else when it comes to math.
    5. Not hasty; not precipitate; lacking in promptness; acting with deliberation.
      • The Bible, Prov. xiv. 29He that is slow to wrath is of great understanding.
    6. (of a clock or the like) Behind in time; indicating a time earlier than the true time.
      That clock is slow.
    7. Lacking spirit; deficient in liveliness or briskness.
    8. (of a period of time) Not busy; lacking activity.
      It was a slow news day, so the editor asked us to make our articles wordier.
      I'm just sitting here with a desk of cards, enjoying a slow afternoon.

    Synonyms

    Antonyms

    Derived terms

    Terms derived from slow (adjective)

    Verb

    1. (transitive) To make (something) run, move, etc. less quickly; to reduce the speed of.
    2. (transitive) To keep from going quickly; to hinder the progress of.
    3. (intransitive) To become slow; to slacken in speed; to decelerate.
      • 2012, John Branch, Snow Fall : The Avalanche at Tunnel CreekAfter about a minute, the creek bed vomited the debris into a gently sloped meadow. Saugstad felt the snow slow and tried to keep her hands in front of her.

    Synonyms

    Derived terms

    Noun

    slow

    (plural slows)
    1. Someone who is slow; a sluggard.
    2. (music) A slow song.

    Adverb

    slow

    1. Slowly.That clock is running slow.
      • ShakespeareLet him have time to mark how slow time goes
        In time of sorrow.

    Anagrams

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