SLIP (slipped, slipping)

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 Dictionary entry overview: What does slip mean? 

• SLIP (noun)
  The noun SLIP has 15 senses:

1. a socially awkward or tactless act

2. a minor inadvertent mistake usually observed in speech or writing or in small accidents or memory lapses etc.

3. potter's clay that is thinned and used for coating or decorating ceramics

4. a part (sometimes a root or leaf or bud) removed from a plant to propagate a new plant through rooting or grafting

5. a young and slender person

6. a place where a craft can be made fast

7. an accidental misstep threatening (or causing) a fall

8. a slippery smoothness

9. artifact consisting of a narrow flat piece of material

10. a small sheet of paper

11. a woman's sleeveless undergarment

12. bed linen consisting of a cover for a pillow

13. an unexpected slide

14. a flight maneuver; aircraft slides sideways in the air

15. the act of avoiding capture (especially by cunning)

  Familiarity information: SLIP used as a noun is familiar.

• SLIP (verb)
  The verb SLIP has 11 senses:

1. move stealthily

2. insert inconspicuously or quickly or quietly

3. move obliquely or sideways, usually in an uncontrolled manner

4. get worse

5. move smoothly and easily

6. to make a mistake or be incorrect

7. pass on stealthily

8. move easily

9. cause to move with a smooth or sliding motion

10. pass out of one's memory

11. move out of position

  Familiarity information: SLIP used as a verb is familiar.

 Dictionary entry details 

• SLIP (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A socially awkward or tactless act

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

faux pas; gaffe; gaucherie; slip; solecism

Hypernyms ("slip" is a kind of...):

bloomer; blooper; blunder; boner; boo-boo; botch; bungle; flub; foul-up; fuckup; pratfall (an embarrassing mistake)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A minor inadvertent mistake usually observed in speech or writing or in small accidents or memory lapses etc.

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

miscue; parapraxis; slip; slip-up

Hypernyms ("slip" is a kind of...):

error; fault; mistake (a wrong action attributable to bad judgment or ignorance or inattention)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "slip"):

Freudian slip (a slip-up that (according to Sigmund Freud) results from the operation of unconscious wishes or conflicts and can reveal unconscious processes in normal healthy individuals)

Derivation:

slip (pass out of one's memory)

slip (to make a mistake or be incorrect)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Potter's clay that is thinned and used for coating or decorating ceramics

Classified under:

Nouns denoting substances

Hypernyms ("slip" is a kind of...):

potter's clay; potter's earth (clay that does not contain any iron; used in making pottery or for modeling)

Sense 4

Meaning:

A part (sometimes a root or leaf or bud) removed from a plant to propagate a new plant through rooting or grafting

Classified under:

Nouns denoting plants

Synonyms:

cutting; slip

Hypernyms ("slip" is a kind of...):

stalk; stem (a slender or elongated structure that supports a plant or fungus or a plant part or plant organ)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "slip"):

quickset (cuttings of plants set in the ground to grow as hawthorn for hedges or vines)

Sense 5

Meaning:

A young and slender person

Classified under:

Nouns denoting people

Context example:

he's a mere slip of a lad

Hypernyms ("slip" is a kind of...):

spring chicken; young person; younker; youth (a young person (especially a young man or boy))

Sense 6

Meaning:

A place where a craft can be made fast

Classified under:

Nouns denoting spatial position

Synonyms:

berth; moorage; mooring; slip

Hypernyms ("slip" is a kind of...):

anchorage; anchorage ground (place for vessels to anchor)

Sense 7

Meaning:

An accidental misstep threatening (or causing) a fall

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural events

Synonyms:

slip; trip

Context example:

the jolt caused many slips and a few spills

Hypernyms ("slip" is a kind of...):

misadventure; mischance; mishap (an instance of misfortune)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "slip"):

fall; spill; tumble (a sudden drop from an upright position)

Sense 8

Meaning:

A slippery smoothness

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

Synonyms:

slick; slickness; slip; slipperiness

Context example:

he could feel the slickness of the tiller

Hypernyms ("slip" is a kind of...):

smoothness (a texture without roughness; smooth to the touch)

Derivation:

slippy (causing or tending to cause things to slip or slide)

Sense 9

Meaning:

Artifact consisting of a narrow flat piece of material

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Synonyms:

slip; strip

Hypernyms ("slip" is a kind of...):

artefact; artifact (a man-made object taken as a whole)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "slip"):

band (a thin flat strip of flexible material that is worn around the body or one of the limbs (especially to decorate the body))

weather strip; weather stripping; weatherstrip; weatherstripping (a narrow strip of material to cover the joint of a door or window to exclude the cold)

tape (a long thin piece of cloth or paper as used for binding or fastening)

tab (a short strip of material attached to or projecting from something in order to facilitate opening or identifying or handling it)

stay (a thin strip of metal or bone that is used to stiffen a garment (e.g. a corset))

screed (an accurately levelled strip of material placed on a wall or floor as guide for the even application of plaster or concrete)

ribbon; typewriter ribbon (a long strip of inked material for making characters on paper with a typewriter)

mullion (a nonstructural vertical strip between the casements or panes of a window (or the panels of a screen))

lead; leading (thin strip of metal used to separate lines of type in printing)

reef (one of several strips across a sail that can be taken in or rolled up to lessen the area of the sail that is exposed to the wind)

cramp; cramp iron (a strip of metal with ends bent at right angles; used to hold masonry together)

band (a thin flat strip or loop of flexible material that goes around or over something else, typically to hold it together or as a decoration)

band; ring (a strip of material attached to the leg of a bird to identify it (as in studies of bird migration))

Sense 10

Meaning:

A small sheet of paper

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Synonyms:

slip; slip of paper

Context example:

a withdrawal slip

Hypernyms ("slip" is a kind of...):

piece of paper; sheet; sheet of paper (paper used for writing or printing)

Sense 11

Meaning:

A woman's sleeveless undergarment

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Synonyms:

chemise; shift; shimmy; slip; teddy

Hypernyms ("slip" is a kind of...):

undergarment; unmentionable (a garment worn under other garments)

Meronyms (parts of "slip"):

shoulder strap; strap (a band that goes over the shoulder and supports a garment or bag)

Sense 12

Meaning:

Bed linen consisting of a cover for a pillow

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Synonyms:

case; pillow slip; pillowcase; slip

Context example:

the burglar carried his loot in a pillowcase

Hypernyms ("slip" is a kind of...):

bed linen (linen or cotton articles for a bed (as sheets and pillowcases))

Sense 13

Meaning:

An unexpected slide

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

sideslip; skid; slip

Hypernyms ("slip" is a kind of...):

coast; glide; slide (the act of moving smoothly along a surface while remaining in contact with it)

Derivation:

slip (move out of position)

slip (move obliquely or sideways, usually in an uncontrolled manner)

slip (move stealthily)

slippy (causing or tending to cause things to slip or slide)

Sense 14

Meaning:

A flight maneuver; aircraft slides sideways in the air

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

sideslip; slip

Hypernyms ("slip" is a kind of...):

airplane maneuver; flight maneuver (a maneuver executed by an aircraft)

Derivation:

slip (move smoothly and easily)

Sense 15

Meaning:

The act of avoiding capture (especially by cunning)

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

eluding; elusion; slip

Hypernyms ("slip" is a kind of...):

evasion (the act of physically escaping from something (an opponent or a pursuer or an unpleasant situation) by some adroit maneuver)

Derivation:

slip (move stealthily)

• SLIP (verb)

Conjugation:

Sense 1

Meaning:

Move stealthily

Classified under:

Verbs of walking, flying, swimming

Synonyms:

slip; steal

Context example:

The ship slipped away in the darkness

Hypernyms (to "slip" is one way to...):

move (move so as to change position, perform a nontranslational motion)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s PP

Also:

slip away (pass by)

Derivation:

slip (the act of avoiding capture (especially by cunning))

slip (an unexpected slide)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Insert inconspicuously or quickly or quietly

Classified under:

Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc.

Context example:

He slipped some money into the waiter's hand

Hypernyms (to "slip" is one way to...):

enclose; inclose; insert; introduce; put in; stick in (place, fit, or thrust (something) into another thing)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something PP

Sense 3

Meaning:

Move obliquely or sideways, usually in an uncontrolled manner

Classified under:

Verbs of walking, flying, swimming

Synonyms:

skid; slew; slide; slip; slue

Context example:

the wheels skidded against the sidewalk

Hypernyms (to "slip" is one way to...):

glide (move smoothly and effortlessly)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "slip"):

submarine (move forward or under in a sliding motion)

skid (slide without control)

side-slip (slide sideways through the air in a downward direction in an airplane along an inclined lateral axis)

Sentence frames:

Something ----s
Somebody ----s
Something is ----ing PP
Somebody ----s PP

Also:

slip up (make an error)

Derivation:

slip (an unexpected slide)

Sense 4

Meaning:

Get worse

Classified under:

Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc.

Synonyms:

drop away; drop off; fall away; slip

Context example:

My grades are slipping

Hypernyms (to "slip" is one way to...):

decline; worsen (grow worse)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "slip"):

backslide; lapse (drop to a lower level, as in one's morals or standards)

Sentence frames:

Something ----s
Somebody ----s

Derivation:

slippage (decline from a standard level of performance or achievement)

Sense 5

Meaning:

Move smoothly and easily

Classified under:

Verbs of walking, flying, swimming

Context example:

water slipped from the polished marble

Hypernyms (to "slip" is one way to...):

break loose; escape; get away (run away from confinement)

Sentence frames:

Something is ----ing PP
Somebody ----s PP

Also:

slip away (leave furtively and stealthily)

slip by (pass by)

Derivation:

slip (a flight maneuver; aircraft slides sideways in the air)

Sense 6

Meaning:

To make a mistake or be incorrect

Classified under:

Verbs of thinking, judging, analyzing, doubting

Synonyms:

err; mistake; slip

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "slip"):

misremember (remember incorrectly)

slip up; stumble; trip up (make an error)

misjudge (judge incorrectly)

fall for (be deceived, duped, or entrapped by)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s

Also:

slip up (make an error)

Derivation:

slip (a minor inadvertent mistake usually observed in speech or writing or in small accidents or memory lapses etc.)

Sense 7

Meaning:

Pass on stealthily

Classified under:

Verbs of buying, selling, owning

Synonyms:

slip; sneak

Context example:

He slipped me the key when nobody was looking

Hypernyms (to "slip" is one way to...):

give; hand; pass; pass on; reach; turn over (place into the hands or custody of)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s somebody something
Somebody ----s something to somebody

Sentence examples:

They slip the food to the people
They slip the people the food

Sense 8

Meaning:

Move easily

Classified under:

Verbs of walking, flying, swimming

Context example:

slip into something comfortable

Hypernyms (to "slip" is one way to...):

move (move so as to change position, perform a nontranslational motion)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s PP

Sense 9

Meaning:

Cause to move with a smooth or sliding motion

Classified under:

Verbs of walking, flying, swimming

Context example:

he slipped the bolt into place

Hypernyms (to "slip" is one way to...):

displace; move (cause to move or shift into a new position or place, both in a concrete and in an abstract sense)

Cause:

slip (move smoothly and easily)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s somebody PP
Somebody ----s something PP
Somebody ----s PP

Sense 10

Meaning:

Pass out of one's memory

Classified under:

Verbs of thinking, judging, analyzing, doubting

Synonyms:

slip; slip one's mind

Hypernyms (to "slip" is one way to...):

blank out; block; draw a blank; forget (be unable to remember)

Sentence frame:

Something ----s

Derivation:

slip (a minor inadvertent mistake usually observed in speech or writing or in small accidents or memory lapses etc.)

Sense 11

Meaning:

Move out of position

Classified under:

Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc.

Synonyms:

dislocate; luxate; slip; splay

Context example:

the artificial hip joint luxated and had to be put back surgically

Hypernyms (to "slip" is one way to...):

displace; move (cause to move or shift into a new position or place, both in a concrete and in an abstract sense)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Derivation:

slippage (failing to hold or slipping out of place)

slip (an unexpected slide)

 Context examples 

When a mate brings a slip on his cable—one as knows me, I mean—it won't be in the same world with old John.

(Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson)

I clutched at a gun—my pockets were full of cartridges—and, parting the thorn bushes at the gate of our zareba, quickly slipped out.

(The Lost World, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

When I got him into his box, from which he had slipped, I was off as fast as I could run.

(The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

They drank and drank, and ever the bottles slipped forward and they drank more.

(The Sea-Wolf, by Jack London)

So the fortnight slipped away, varied by nothing but the variation of the tide, which altered Mr. Peggotty's times of going out and coming in, and altered Ham's engagements also.

(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)

There was no rejection slip, no explanation, nothing.

(Martin Eden, by Jack London)

I turned the key gently in the lock, opened the door, and slipped through.

(The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Lord Godalming had slipped away for a few minutes, but now he returned.

(Dracula, by Bram Stoker)

Beauty Smith slipped the chain from his neck and stepped back.

(White Fang, by Jack London)

"I thought you'd like him," was all Jo said, as she slipped away to her bed.

(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)