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单词 slow
释义

slown.1

Brit. /sləʊ/, U.S. /sloʊ/
Forms: Old English slawa, early Middle English slauwe, Middle English slowe, Middle English 1600s– slow.
Origin: Formed within English, by conversion. Etymon: slow adj.
Etymology: < slow adj.
1.
a. A slow person (in various senses of the adjective); esp. a lazy or sluggish person. Now rare.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > manner of action > slowness of action or operation > [noun] > one who or that which is slow
sloweOE
tarrier1382
sluggard1398
slugc1425
slugger1539
lingerer1579
snaila1593
slowcoach1828
slowpoke1847
go-slow1858
slowie1901
slow boat to China1919
swiftie1945
the world > movement > rate of motion > slowness > [noun] > tardiness or sluggishness > person
sloweOE
tarrier1382
sluggard1398
slugc1425
lagger1523
slugger1539
snaila1593
loiterer1684
laggard1808
slowpoke1847
eOE King Ælfred tr. Gregory Pastoral Care (Hatton) (1871) xxxix. 283 Oft se slawa, ðonne he agælð & forielt ðæt weorc ðe him niedðearf wære to wyrceanne, ðonne ðynceað him sumu weorc suiðe hefug.
a1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(1)) (1850) Prov. xxiv. 33 Hou longe, slowe, thou slepist?
c1450 MS Douce 52 in Festschrift zum XII. Neuphilologentage (1906) 49 (MED) Lothe to bedde and lothe fro bedde, me[n] schall know þe slow.
1861 J. Pycroft Agony Point (1862) 191 Only one year before, he would have numbered with ‘the old fogies’ and the slows.
2004 K. Bulman & N. Moonie Early Years i. 25 The ‘slow’ children were allowed to start first because they took longer... The ‘slows’ knew who they were, and sat down when ‘slows’ were called for.
b. A slow animal or thing identified contextually, such as a slow horse, a slow train, or a slow piece of music.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > mammals > group Ungulata (hoofed) > family Equidae (general equines) > horse defined by speed or gait > [noun] > slow horse
slow1826
pelter1854
society > travel > rail travel > rolling stock > [noun] > train > slow train
petite vitesse1867
slow1956
society > leisure > the arts > music > piece of music > type of piece > [noun] > slow piece
slow drag1901
slow1956
1826 Sporting Mag. July 213/2 Our ‘slows’ are certainly quicker than most of that genus whom I have observed in other countries.
1875 Fortn. Rev. Feb. 238 Three-fourths of what are termed ‘slows’ are not..the temporary residence of persons in pursuit of their calling, but are the floating-houses in which whole families reside.
1956 Railway Mag. Mar. 163/2 There is a daily slow, stopping at all stations between Damascus and Deraa.
1956 B. Burns in S. Traill Play that Music ii. 34 His style is hot and aggressive—pushing the beat in fast numbers and rhapsodic in slows.
1976 P. Lovesey Swing, swing Together xiii. 55 We can take a train... We can catch a slow to Oxford.
2002 S. Selmon Swing Dancing 9 The slows can be further subdivided into single steps.., or triple steps.., or kick step.., all of which happen in two beats of music.
c. Cricket. A slowly bowled ball. Also: a slow bowler.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > ball game > cricket > bowling > [noun] > a ball bowled > types of delivery or ball
full toss1826
long hop1830
twister1832
bail ball1833
bailer1833
grubber1837
slow ball1838
wide1838
ground ball1839
shooter1843
slower ball1846
twiddler1847
creeper1848
lob1851
sneak1851
sneaker1851
slow1854
bumper1855
teaser1856
daisy-cutter1857
popper1857
yorker1861
sharpshooter1863
headball1866
screwball1866
underhand1866
skimmerc1868
grub1870
ramrod1870
raymonder1870
round-armer1871
grass cutter1876
short pitch1877
leg break1878
lob ball1880
off-break1883
donkey-drop1888
tice1888
fast break1889
leg-breaker1892
kicker1894
spinner1895
wrong 'un1897
googly1903
fizzer1904
dolly1906
short ball1911
wrong 'un1911
bosie1912
bouncer1913
flyer1913
percher1913
finger-spinner1920
inswinger1920
outswinger1920
swinger1920
off-spinner1924
away swinger1925
Chinaman1929
overspinner1930
tweaker1938
riser1944
leg-cutter1949
seamer1952
leggy1954
off-cutter1955
squatter1955
flipper1959
lifter1959
cutter1960
beamer1961
loosener1962
doosra1999
society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > ball game > cricket > cricketer > [noun] > bowler > types of bowler
slow bowler1823
fast bowler1828
bias bowler1854
round-arm1858
demon bowler1861
left-hander1864
chucker1882
lobster1889
slow1895
leg-breaker1904
speed merchant1913
leg-spinner1920
spin bowler1920
off-spinner1924
quickie1934
tweaker1935
swerve-bowler1944
pace bowler1947
seam bowler1948
spinner1951
seamer1952
wrist-spinner1957
outswinger1958
swing bowler1958
quick1960
stock bowler1968
paceman1972
leggy1979
1854 F. Lillywhite Guide to Cricketers (ed. 7) 84 [He] is a good bat, and can bowl ‘slows’ well.
1862 Sporting Life 14 June 3/5 Some of the slows seemed to puzzle him sorely.
1895 Strand Mag. Aug. 141 I have met some capital bowlers in the past. I should class them in two sections, the slows..and the fasts.
1905 H. A. Vachell Hill xii. 249 Fluff's brother bowled slows of a good length, with an awkward break from the off to the leg.
1936 Sporting Globe (Melbourne) 28 Oct. 9/2 He is still a good bowler, about the best of the slows.
1994 Times 23 July (Sport section) 32/4 Nobody did better than Andy Afford, who totted up 51 overs, or Jimmy Adams, that invaluable Jamaican all-rounder, likewise with his left-arm slows.
2. Usually with the and with plural agreement. Those who are slow (in various senses of the adjective); slow people or animals as a class.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > manner of action > slowness of action or operation > [noun] > one who or that which is slow > collectively
sloweOE
the world > movement > rate of motion > slowness > [noun] > tardiness or sluggishness > person > collectively
sloweOE
the world > movement > rate of motion > slowness > [noun] > one who or that which moves slowly > slow-moving person > collectively
slowa1616
eOE King Ælfred tr. Gregory Pastoral Care (Hatton) (1871) xxxix. 281 Ða slawan sint to manianne ðæt hie ne forielden ðone timan for hiera slæwðe ðe hie tiola on don mægen.
?c1225 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Cleo. C.vi) (1972) 189 To ȝein slauwe & sleperes is swiðe opene his earliche ariste from deaðe to liue.
a1393 J. Gower Confessio Amantis (Fairf.) iv. l. 1260 Thus sche was on of the slowe As of such hertes besinesse.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Macbeth (1623) iii. i. 97 The valued file Distinguishes the swift, the slow, the subtle.
1861 T. Hughes Tom Brown at Oxf. I. xiv. 276 The fastest of the fast and slowest of the slow.
2015 Daily Examiner (Grafton, New S. Wales) (Nexis) 15 July 15 Dolphins in a pod are less likely to be attacked but the old, the sick and the slow are targets for hungry sharks.
3. the slows.
a. U.S. Milk sickness in livestock or people, which is typically associated with lethargy or reluctance to move. Cf. Now historical.
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > ill health > animal disease or disorder > disorders of cattle > [noun] > other disorders of cattle
murrainc1450
gall1577
gargyse1577
sprenges1577
wisp1577
closh1587
milting1587
moltlong1587
hammer1600
mallet1600
scurvy1604
wither1648
speed1704
nostril dropping1708
bladdera1722
heartsick1725
throstling1726
striking1776
feather-cling1799
hollow-horn1805
weed1811
blood striking1815
the slows1822
toad-bit1825
coast-fever1840
horn-distemper1843
rat's tail1847
whethering1847
milk fever1860
milt-sickness1867
pearl tumour1872
actinomycosis1877
pearl disease1877
rat-tail1880
lumpy jaw1891
niatism1895
cripple1897
rumenitis1897
Rhodesian fever1903
reticulitis1905
barbone1907
contagious abortion1910
trichomoniasis1915
shipping fever1932
New Forest disease1954
bovine spongiform encephalopathy1987
BSE1987
mad cow disease1988
East Coast fever2009
1822 N.-Y. Med. & Physical Jrnl. 1 316 In the district of country last mentioned the disease [sc. sick stomach or milk sickness] is called the ‘Slows’.
1908 E. O. Jordan Text-bk. Gen. Bacteriol. xxv. 374 Changes in the liver, intestine, and other internal organs are similar to those observed in animals dying of the ‘slows’.
2006 Indiana Mag. Hist. 102 32 Long after the Lincolns departed for Illinois, milk sickness persisted in Indiana...Especially in the area of French Lick, where the chronic form was called the ‘slows’.
b. colloquial. A tendency to move or act slowly, sometimes humorously imagined as an ailment; slowness. Frequently in to have the slows.
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > ill health > [noun] > torpor or sluggishness
heavinessc888
gravity1610
the slows1832
malaise1857
the world > movement > rate of motion > slowness > [noun] > imaginary ailment causing slowness
the slows1832
1832 G. C. Lewis Let. 7 Nov. (1870) 17 Lest Gilbert should think that the Hereford horses have a monopoly of the slows.
1833 Sporting Mag. May 8/2 The hounds..are seldom troubled with the slows.
1862 G. Welles Diary 2 Sept. in W. E. Gienapp & E. L. Gienapp Civil War Diary Gideon Welles (2014) 27 McClellan..can be trusted to act on the defensive, but having the ‘slows’ he is good for nothing for an onward movement.
1927 Daily Express 13 Dec. 16/2 Rimell's mare, How Nice, had a fit of the slows, for she was always in the next division from start to finish.
1970 D. Francis Rat Race viii. 102 They might as well send him to the knackers. Got the slows right and proper, that one has.
2009 Mississippi Business Jrnl. (Nexis) 6 July The state might have had the ‘slows’ when it came to the state budget, but it has been ahead of the curve when it comes to grabbing stimulus money.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2021; most recently modified version published online March 2022).

slown.2

Brit. /sləʊ/, U.S. /sloʊ/
Origin: Of multiple origins. Partly formed within English, by clipping or shortening. Partly formed within English, by conversion. Etymons: slowdown n.; slow v.
Etymology: Partly shortened < slowdown n., and partly < slow v.
A reduced speed; a decrease or decline in rate of movement, progress, or growth. Cf. slowdown n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > rate of motion > [noun] > decreasing rate of movement or progress
relent1580
slowing1598
slowing up1868
slowing down1870
slow-up1874
slowdown1882
deceleration1897
slack1899
slow1954
1954 M. Parker Mountain Mating xxxvi. 307 ‘They-uns was with us,’ Charkey assured him, ‘but jumped out and taken to the woods when you came to a slow fer the bend.’
1992 Daily Yomiuri (Tokyo) (Nexis) 25 Oct. Sales at supermarkets in September..totaled 1.13 trillion yen, a slow of 1.1 percent from the previous year.
2020 Daily Nation (Kenya) (Nexis) 2 May The country has seen a slow in the pace of new infections.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2021; most recently modified version published online March 2022).

slowadj.

Brit. /sləʊ/, U.S. /sloʊ/
Forms:

α. (Chiefly northern in later use) Old English sleaw (rare), Old English (in derivatives)–Middle English slau, Old English–Middle English slaw, Middle English sclaw, Middle English slaugh, Middle English slauwe, Middle English slawe, Middle English slawh; English regional 1800s slaa (Isle of Wight), 1800s slaw (Yorkshire); Scottish pre-1700 sclaw, pre-1700 slau, pre-1700 slaue, pre-1700 slawe, pre-1700 1700s– slaw, 1800s sla, 1900s slaa (Orkney and Shetland), 1900s– slae (rare).

β. Middle English scloe, Middle English sclow, Middle English sclowe, Middle English sloe, Middle English 1600s slou, Middle English–1500s slo, Middle English–1600s slowe, Middle English– slow, 1500s sloo; also Scottish pre-1700 slo, pre-1700 slou, pre-1700 sloue.

γ. Middle English sclowh, Middle English sloȝ, Middle English slogh, Middle English sloghe, Middle English sloouȝ, Middle English slouȝ, Middle English slough, Middle English sloughe, Middle English slouh, Middle English slovȝ, Middle English slowȝ, Middle English slowh; N.E.D. (1912) also records a form late Middle English slouȝe.

Origin: A word inherited from Germanic.
Etymology: Cognate with West Frisian sleau sluggish, lazy, listless, sloppy, slow, East Frisian (Saterland) sljou dejected, Middle Dutch slee, sleeu blunt, sluggish, lazy (Dutch regional sleeuw), Old Saxon slēu limp (Middle Low German slē blunt), Old High German slē, slēo blunt, feeble, limp (Middle High German slē, German schleh, schlehe), Old Icelandic sljór, slǽr blunt, faint-hearted, Old Swedish slior blunt, sluggish, weak (Swedish slö), Old Danish sløff, sløw blunt, weak, tired (Danish sløv), further etymology uncertain.Compare ( < early Scandinavian) North Saami láivi , Lule Saami slájvve weak. The γ. forms show reverse spellings, by analogy with the spelling of words such as though which had come to rhyme with slow as a result of converging processes of sound change; compare discussion at G n.
I. Senses relating to a lack of promptness, liveliness, or momentum.
1.
a. Naturally disinclined to be active or to exert oneself; sluggish, slothful, lazy.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > inaction > disinclination to act or listlessness > [adjective] > sluggish or heavy
slowOE
sluggy?c1225
dull1393
slowfulc1400
sluggedc1430
sluggingc1430
slugc1440
sluggishc1450
lithera1500
peakish1519
lumpish1528
sopit1528
loiterous1566
slugring1566
drowsy1570
slow-bellied1576
snailish1581
blate1597
druggly1611
jacent1611
clammy1622
loggish1642
ignave1657
sliving1661
druggle-headed1694
slow-coachish1844
loggy1847
logy1859
tardigradous1866
tardigrade1883
α.
OE West Saxon Gospels: Matt. (Corpus Cambr.) xxv. 26 Þu yfela ðeow & slawa [L. serve male et piger].., hyt gebyrede þæt þu befæstest min feoh mynyterum.
OE Rule St. Benet (Corpus Cambr.) iv. 17 Ne sceal mon beon ofermod, ne druncengeorn, ne oferæte, ne to slapol, ne slaw [a1225 Winteney slaw], ne gnorniende.
1372 in E. Wilson Descriptive Index Lyrics John of Grimestone's Preaching Bk. (1973) 5 (MED) Þe slauwe man is but a driȝe tre þat no froit wil beren.
a1450 Castle Perseverance (1969) l. 1030 He is provd, wrathful, and envyous; Glotons, slaw, and lecherous.
c1540 J. Bellenden tr. Livy Hist. Rome (1901) I. i. xiii. 74 Þai held þe king of Romanis for ane slaw and effemynate prince.
1597 A. Montgomerie Cherrie & Slae 803 Nocht else he saw in age bot anger slack and slaw.
β. a1200 MS Trin. Cambr. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1873) 2nd Ser. 7 Longe we habben lein on ure fule synnes..alse slou man doð on swete slape.a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add. 27944) (1975) II. xviii. xii. 1148 Whanne moche hony is lefte in here huyes þey [sc. bees] wexeþ slowe and worcheþ þe lasse.a1500 (?a1450) Gesta Romanorum (Harl. 7333) (1879) 239 He that is the sloweste of yow, or most slewthe is in, shall have my kyngdom aftir my discese.a1538 T. Starkey Dial. Pole & Lupset (1989) 54 Lyke as in a dropcy the body ys unweldy unlusty & slo no thyng quyke to move.1773 F. Burney Early Jrnls. & Lett. (1988) I. 259 The mother is a slow, dawdling, sleepy kind of Dame.1785 European Mag. 9 453 For ease the slow Mahratta spoils, And hardier Sik erratic toils.1854 W. M. Thackeray in Harper's New Monthly Mag. July 209/1 Give me a calm woman, a slow woman—a lazy, majestic woman.1925 J. T. MacCurdy Psychol. of Emotion xxix. 307 When she heard the news she became slow, languid, and depressed.2007 Vibe Apr. 60/1 But unlike whiskey, which makes me alternately slow and angry, or beer, which just makes me slow, or vodka, which just makes me drunk, gin simply makes me nuts.γ. a1250 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Nero) (1952) 115 Hwo mei beon uorscheome slummi & sluggi & slouh ðet bihalt hwu swuðe bisi ure louerd was on eorðe.c1300 St. Michael (Laud) l. 677 in C. Horstmann Early S.-Eng. Legendary (1887) 319 (MED) Ho-so hath of þe watere mest, he schal beo..gret slepare and slovȝ þar-to.?c1430 (c1400) J. Wyclif Eng. Wks. (1880) 193 (MED) Men moste be war þat..þei ben betre occupied in þe lawe of god..& not slouȝ ne ydel in ouermoche sleep.
b. Of a person's features, qualities, or disposition: characterized by sloth or sluggishness; belonging to a slothful or sluggish person.In later use with admixture of sense 3 or sense 4.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > inaction > disinclination to act or listlessness > [adjective] > sluggish or heavy > of conditions, etc.
sloweOE
unbaina1470
sluggish1561
eOE King Ælfred tr. Gregory Pastoral Care (Hatton) (1871) lxv. 463 Ðonne gerest ðæt mod hit orsorglice... Ðonne cymð se lytega sætere to ðæm slawan mode.
a1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Bodl. 959) (1965) Prov. xii. 24 (MED) Þe hond of stronge men shal lordshipen, þe whiche, forsoþe, is slowȝ [a1382 Douce 369(1) sloȝ; L. remissa], shal seruen to tributis.
c1450 (c1380) G. Chaucer House of Fame (Fairf. 16) (1878) l. 1778 Ye maisty Swyne, ye ydel wrechhes Ful of roten, slowe techches.
1635 J. Maxwell tr. Duc de Richelieu Emblema Animae 13 Some are unapt to manage publicke affaires, being either of a sullen and solitary humour, or of a slacke and slow disposition.
1867 Sunday Mag. 1 Sept. 845/2 But, alas! for hearts so slow and hard as ours, we need Christ to be revealed to us by the Spirit.
2020 E. Lindland Crossroads of Culture ii. xii. 516 Gone were the full cheeks and well-fleshed body of the man I had previously met, and in his place was a thin man, with sunken cheeks, baggy skin, and a slow demeanor.
2. Not quick in learning, thinking, or understanding; lacking mental acuity; dull, dim.
a. Of a person or (occasionally) an animal. Also with in, of.See also slow on the uptake at uptake n. 1.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > lack of understanding > stupidity, dullness of intellect > [adjective]
sloweOE
stuntc960
dullOE
hardOE
stuntlyc1000
sotc1050
dillc1175
dulta1225
simplea1325
heavy1340
astonedc1374
sheepishc1380
dull-witteda1387
lourd1390
steerishc1411
ass-likea1425
brainless?a1439
deafc1440
sluggishc1450
short-witted1477
obtuse1509
peakish1519
wearish1519
deaf, or dumb as a beetle1520
doileda1522
gross1526
headlessa1530
stulty1532
ass-headed1533
pot-headed1533
stupid?1541
sheep's head1542
doltish1543
dumpish1545
assish1548
blockish1548
slow-witted1548
blockheaded1549
surd1551
dull-headed1552
hammer-headed1552
skit-brained?1553
buzzardly1561
witless1562
log-headeda1566
assy1566
sottish1566
dastardly1567
stupidious1567
beetle-headed1570
calvish1570
bluntish1578
cod's-headed1578
grout-headed1578
bedaft1579
dull-pated1580
blate1581
buzzard-like1581
long-eared1582
dullard1583
woodena1586
duncical1588
leaden-headed1589
buzzard1592
dorbellical1592
dunstical1592
heavy-headeda1593
shallow-brained1592
blunt-witted1594
mossy1597
Bœotian1598
clay-brained1598
fat1598
fat-witted1598
knotty-pated1598
stupidous1598
wit-lost1599
barren1600
duncifiedc1600
lourdish1600
stockish1600
thick1600
booby1603
leaden-pated1603
partless1603
thin-headed1603
leaden-skulledc1604
blockhead1606
frost-brained1606
ram-headed1608
beef-witted1609
insulse1609
leaden-spirited1609
asininec1610
clumse1611
blockheadly1612
wattle-headed1613
flata1616
logger-headeda1616
puppy-headeda1616
shallow-patedc1616
thick-brained1619
half-headed1621
buzzard-blinda1625
beef-brained1628
toom-headed1629
thick-witted1634
woollen-witted1635
squirrel-headed1637
clod-pated1639
lean-souled1639
muddy-headed1642
leaden-witteda1645
as sad as any mallet1645
under-headed1646
fat-headed1647
half-witted1647
insipid1651
insulsate1652
soft-headed1653
thick-skulleda1657
muddish1658
non-intelligent1659
whey-brained1660
sap-headed1665
timber-headed1666
leather-headeda1668
out of (one's) tree1669
boobily1673
thoughtless1673
lourdly1674
logger1675
unintelligenta1676
Bœotic1678
chicken-brained1678
under-witted1683
loggerhead1684
dunderheaded1692
unintelligible1694
buffle-headed1697
crassicc1700
numbskulled1707
crassous1708
doddy-polled1708
haggis-headed1715
niddy-noddy1722
muzzy1723
pudding-headed1726
sumphish1728
pitcher-souleda1739
duncey1743
hebete1743
chuckheaded1756
dumb1756
duncely1757
imbecile1766
mutton-headed1768
chuckle-headed1770
jobbernowl1770
dowfarta1774
boobyish1778
wittol1780
staumrel1787
opaquec1789
stoopid1791
mud-headed1793
borné1795
muzzy-headed1798
nog-headed1800
thick-headed1801
gypit1804
duncish1805
lightweight1809
numbskull1814
tup-headed1816
chuckle-pate1820
unintellectuala1821
dense1822
ninnyish1822
dunch1825
fozy1825
potato-headed1826
beef-headed1828
donkeyish1831
blockheadish1833
pinheaded1837
squirrel-minded1837
pumpkin-headed1838
tomfoolish1838
dundering1840
chicken-headed1842
like a bump on a log1842
ninny-minded1849
numbheadeda1852
nincompoopish1852
suet-brained1852
dolly1853
mullet-headed1853
sodden1853
fiddle-headed1854
numb1854
bovine1855
logy1859
crass1861
unsmart1861
off his chump1864
wooden-headed1865
stupe1866
lean-minded1867
duffing1869
cretinous1871
doddering1871
thick-head1873
doddling1874
stupido1879
boneheaded1883
woolly-headed1883
leaden-natured1889
suet-headed1890
sam-sodden1891
dopey1896
turnip-headed1898
bonehead1903
wool-witted1905
peanut-headed1906
peanut-brained1907
dilly1909
torpid-minded1909
retardate1912
nitwitted1917
meat-headed1918
mug1922
cloth-headed1925
loopy1925
nitwit1928
lame-brained1929
dead from the neck up1930
simpy1932
nail-headed1936
square-headed1936
dingbats1937
pinhead1939
dim-witted1940
pea-brained1942
clueless1943
lobotomized1943
retarded1949
pointy-headed1950
clottish1952
like a stunned mullet1953
silly (or crazy) as a two-bob watch1954
out to lunch1955
pin-brained1958
dozy1959
eejity1964
out of one's tiny mind1965
doofus1967
twitty1967
twittish1969
twatty1975
twattish1976
blur1977
dof1979
goofus1981
dickheaded1991
dickish1991
numpty1992
cockish1996
eOE King Ælfred tr. Boethius De Consol. Philos. (Otho) (2009) I. xxvi. 504 Þone sænan þe bið swa slaw [L. segnis ac stupidus torpet] þu scealt hatan assa ma þonne man.
a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add. 27944) (1975) II. xviii. i. 1093 As the blood is more pure and cleere, some..haueþ bettre estimacioun... Þerfore it is þat þe oxe is slowe and stable.
c1400 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (Tiber.) f. 164v (MED) Constatyn..was slouȝ & dol of wyt.
a1500 ( J. Yonge tr. Secreta Secret. (Rawl.) (1898) 231 (MED) Tho that..haue moisti flesh and lytill hette bene slow and of slow vndyrstondynge.
1611 R. Cotgrave Dict. French & Eng. Tongues Pucelle nicette, a slow, dull, simple, foolish, or nice girle.
1712 R. Steele Spectator No. 509. ⁋4 If a Man of a great Genius could..substitute slower Men of Fidelity to transact the methodical part of his Affairs.
1825 W. Scott Betrothed xiii, in Tales Crusaders I. 234 My nephew..hath a fancy like a minstrel. Myself am but slow in imagining such devices.
1858 C. Dickens Let. 15 Sept. (1995) VIII. 661 I thought them a dull and slow audience.
1875 B. Jowett tr. Plato Dialogues (ed. 2) III. 228 I am slow of understanding.
a1940 F. S. Fitzgerald Last Tycoon (1941) i. 16 I must be slow, for only then did I realize that Stahr was Mr. Smith.
1994 Star Tribune (Minneapolis) (Nexis) 6 Oct. 1 e I was put in the class for slow kids, and I had a bad inferiority complex because I had three very brilliant brothers and sisters.
2001 J. Boyle Galloway Street 45 He's not very clever, in fact to tell you the truth he's a bit slow.
b. Of the mind or its operations.The ultimate source of quot. eOE is Aldhelm De laude virginitatis 60. It translates Latin torpens in the phrase torpens nostrae mediocritatis ingenium, literally ‘the torpid intellect of my mediocrity (i.e. my mediocre self)’.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > lack of understanding > stupidity, dullness of intellect > [adjective] > of actions, ideas, etc.
sloweOE
bluntc1175
simplea1425
headless1563
sottish1592
thick1600
stupid1609
incrassate1659
crass1660
simple-minded1774
bright1830
simplistic1844
noodly1870
unelectric1876
dinlo1907
clunky1965
eOE Cleopatra Gloss. in W. G. Stryker Lat.-Old Eng. Gloss. in MS Cotton Cleopatra A.III (Ph.D. diss., Stanford Univ.) (1951) 318 Ni torpens, sio slawe.
a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1865) I. 5 (MED) Schort lyf, dul witte, and slowe vnderstondynge..letteþ vs to knowe many þinges.
a1450 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (Bodl.) v. xii It is a token of dulnes and of slowe witte and vndirstonding.
1651 T. Hobbes Leviathan i. viii. 32 A slow Imagination maketh that Defect..which is commonly called Dulnesse.
1697 R. Bentley Diss. Epist. Phalaris 14 Another sort of Proofs, that will affect the most slow Judgments, and assure the most timid or incredulous.
1786 W. Paley Princ. Moral & Polit. Philos. (ed. 2) iii. iii. ix. 300 At our public schools..quick parts are cultivated, slow ones are neglected.
1812 Trans. Soc. Improvem. Med. & Chirurg. Knowl. 3 106 He was observed to have a slow apprehension; but his judgment was correct, and what he learnt was thoroughly retained.
1849 T. B. Macaulay Hist. Eng. II. vi. 11 Such reasoning had no effect on the slow understanding and imperious temper of James.
1926 W. S. Maugham Casuarina Tree (1928) 295 Then something seemed to dawn in that slow intelligence of his.
2010 Herald Express (Torquay) (Nexis) 27 Nov. 17 His Devon accent was often mistaken by visitors as the product of a slow mind.
3.
a. With infinitive: not ready, prompt, or willing to do something; reluctant to do something.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > will > wish or inclination > unwillingness > [adjective]
argha1000
slowOE
unwillyc1200
sweera1300
unfain1338
loathc1374
dangerousc1386
eschewc1386
squeamous1387
obstinate?a1439
unpresta1500
ill-willing?1520
evil-willing1525
untowards1525
untowarda1530
unwilling1533
strange1548
ill-willed1549
dainty1553
relucting1553
squeamish?1553
nicea1560
loathful1561
coyish1566
coy1576
unhearty1583
costive1594
unready1595
tarrowinga1598
undisposed1597
involuntary1598
backward1600
retrograde1602
unpregnant1604
scrupulous1608
unprone1611
refractory1614
behindhanda1616
nilling1620
backwards1627
shya1628
retractable1632
reluctant1638
loughta1641
tendera1641
unapt1640
uninclinable1640
unbeteaming1642
boggling1645
averse1646
indisposed1646
aversant1657
incomposed1660
disinclined1703
unobliging1707
unconsenting1713
uninclined1729
tenacious1766
disinclinable1769
ill-disposed1771
unaffectioned1788
scruplesomec1800
back-handed1817
sweert1817
tharf1828
backward in coming forward1830
unvoluntary1834
misinclined1837
squeamy1838
balky1847
retractive1869
grudging1874
tharfish1876
unwishful1876
safety first1917
the world > action or operation > manner of action > slowness of action or operation > [adjective] > slow to act or dilatory
slowOE
tediousc1485
longsome1543
dilatorya1616
sliving1661
wanting1691
traa dy liooar1878
spare-
OE Confessional Prayer (Royal 2 B.v) in Studier i Modern Språkvetenskap (1968) 3 106 Ic þe bidde min drihten þæt þu me gemiltsige ealles þæs þe ic to slaw [altered from sæne] wæs mine leomu for ðe to biganne & mine tearas to geotanne.
c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 9885 Stunnt. & stidiȝ. dill. & slaw To sekenn sawless seollþe.
c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) l. 9327 He is..Slou to fiȝte & quic to fle & þat nis no manhede.
a1425 (a1400) Prick of Conscience (Galba & Harl.) (1863) l. 188 (MED) To listen and lere þai er ful slaw.
1565 T. Cooper Thesaurus at Piger Slow to write: loth to take the paynes to write.
1599 W. Shakespeare Romeo & Juliet iv. i. 3 I am nothing slow to slacke [1597 slacke to slow] his haste. View more context for this quotation
1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Pastorals i, in tr. Virgil Wks. 2 Freedom..came at length, tho' slow to come.
1781 W. Cowper Epist. to Lady in France in Poems (1980) I. 444 He who knew what human hearts would prove, How slow to learn the dictates of his love.
1815 W. Scott Guy Mannering I. xxi. 333 As some have not been slow to tell their lords.
1885 Manch. Examiner 15 May 5/3 They will not be slow to return him like for like.
1977 V. S. Naipaul India: Wounded Civilization ii. iv. 92 The shaky, semipopulist government of the state was slow to act.
1991 D. Gaines Teenage Wasteland i. 30 Parents and kids complained that school authorities had been slow to respond to widespread drug use and alcoholism.
2001 N.Y. Times 4 Jan. c11/4 Publishers were slow to react and slow to embrace electronic books.
b. With in, of, †on, †to and a noun of action or verbal noun: not ready, prompt, or willing to take the specified action; reluctant to do the thing specified.
ΚΠ
OE Ælfric Catholic Homilies: 2nd Ser. (Cambr. Gg.3.28) xxiv. 227 Ða sind unstrange, þe slawe beoð to godum weorcum.
a1200 MS Trin. Cambr. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1873) 2nd Ser. 183 (MED) To gode þu ware slau and let, and to euele spac and hwat.
a1225 (c1200) Vices & Virtues (1888) 3 Hie me haueð imaked heuy and slaw on godes weorkes ðurh idelnesse.
c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) Rom. xii. 11 Not slow in bisynesse, feruent, or brennynge, in spirit.
a1400 (c1303) R. Mannyng Handlyng Synne (Harl.) l. 4322 (MED) Yn Goddys seruyse are swych men slogh.
1526 W. Bonde Pylgrimage of Perfection iii. sig. HHHiiiv Nat slow in commyng therto, nor sluggisshe therein.
1555 J. Harpsfield in E. Bonner Homilies 30 b Fooles and sloo of belefe.
1594 T. Kyd tr. R. Garnier Cornelia i. 166 The wrath of heauen..is slow In punishing the euils we haue done.
1712 Spectator No. 527. ⁋2 People will be as slow and unwilling in disbelieving scandal, as they are quick and forward in believing it.
1831 W. Scott Count Robert iv, in Tales of my Landlord 4th Ser. I. 151 These men, quick in malice, though slow in perilous service.
1867 G. MacDonald Ann. Quiet Neighbourhood III. vii. 156 The people were very slow in dispersing.
1996 Times 30 Sept. 10 To too many people, the civil justice system remains a mysterious creature, born of the Dark Ages, ponderous of movement, slow of reaction.
2012 Independent 8 Sept. (Mag.) 43/2 Europe has been slow in communicating the screwcap's ability to bring freshness and freedom from cork taint.
c. Without construction: not quick to take action; acting with delay; reluctant to do something.Sometimes with admixture of sense 4b.
ΚΠ
a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1871) III. 149 Cirus..ȝaf þe Iewes þe same leue; but þe peple was slowȝ [c1400 Tiber. sloouȝ].
c1425 (?a1400) Arthur (Longleat 55) l. 365 (MED) He was nat Sclowh, But to þe hulle hym drowh.
1482 R. Cely Let. 17 Oct. in Cely Lett. (1975) 182 Me thynke hytt wyll be whel done, for howr detturs ar sclow payars.
c1540 J. Bellenden tr. Livy Hist. Rome (1903) II. iv. xii. 90 Ȝe ar full of mynassing in tyme of pece, and richt slaw in tyme of batall.
1831 Society 1 321 A clever hint to show slow personages what is expected from them.
1905 W. Jerome in N. Cazden et al. Folk Songs of Catskills (1983) v. 233 Springtime brings the ringtime; come, love, don't be so slow: Change your name and go the game, I'll do the same, my Irish Molly-O.
1985 San Diego Union-Tribune (Nexis) 14 Feb. It's not unheard of for some of the old guard to dismiss slow responders with a snide, ‘They couldn't make the commitment.’
2002 D. Goleman et al. Business: Ultimate Resource 529/2 Do you prepare monthly lists of all customers whose settlement is overdue, and do you list the total indebtedness of slow customers as well as the amount that is currently overdue?
4.
a. Of an action, activity, or thing: marked or characterized by lack of haste or momentum; lacking liveliness or energy; unhurried, deliberate.
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > rate of motion > slowness > [adjective] > specifically of things or actions
slackc1000
slowa1300
lent14..
slow-paced1610
adagio1729
vermigrade1938
the world > action or operation > manner of action > slowness of action or operation > [adjective] > marked or characterized by slowness
slowa1300
go-slow1874
a1300 in C. Brown Relig. Lyrics 14th Cent. (1924) 3 Ich nagt ne ansuarede þe Bute wordes scloe and sclepie.
c1300 St. Michael (Laud) l. 674 in C. Horstmann Early S.-Eng. Legendary (1887) 319 (MED) Ho-so hath of þe eorþe mest, he is..Of slouȝ wreche and Aruȝ mouth.
a1393 J. Gower Confessio Amantis (Fairf.) iv. l. 1281 Al hire mod was overtorned, Which ferst sche hadde of slow manere.
1535 Bible (Coverdale) Exod. iv. 10 For I haue a slowe speach, & a slowe tunge.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Henry VI, Pt. 3 (1623) iv. x. 8 I haue not..posted off their suites with slow delayes. View more context for this quotation
a1616 W. Shakespeare Cymbeline (1623) i. i. 65 That..the search [should be] so slow That could not trace them. View more context for this quotation
1681 J. Dryden Absalom & Achitophel 22 Few words he said; but..those..More slow than Hybla drops, and far more sweet.
1782 W. Cowper Charity in Poems 203 With slow deliberation he unties His glitt'ring purse.
1797 W. Godwin Enquirer ii. xii. 462 The style..of Tom Jones..is feeble, costive, and slow.
1810 G. Crabbe Borough xix. 255 The like slow Speech was his.
1814 Ld. Byron Corsair Ep. Ded. p. viii The stanza of Spenser is perhaps too slow and dignified for narrative.
1937 Life 10 May 62/3 American filmgoers will be impressed with the film's beauty, and bored by its dragging tempo and slow action.
1978 J. Barfoot Abra iii. 13 In the evenings I have my fireplace, my drawings, myself. Everything is very slow, very soft, and my thick quilts are like the snow, heavy and protecting.
2014 S. King Mr. Mercedes 380 She turns that way, driving with slow care.
b. Of a person: spending a comparatively long time carrying out particular tasks or actions; acting in an unhurried, deliberate manner.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > manner of action > slowness of action or operation > [adjective] > specifically of persons
slowc1300
sluggishc1450
tardious?1572
dreich1606
slowback1610
reluctant1797
tardigrade1813
the world > movement > rate of motion > slowness > [adjective] > tardy or sluggish > specifically of persons or animals
slowc1300
sloth1412
sluggingc1430
sluggishc1450
sleuth1567
slowback1610
dilatorya1616
tardigradous1652
reluctant1797
c1300 St. Michael (Laud) l. 671 in C. Horstmann Early S.-Eng. Legendary (1887) 318 Ho-so hath of þe eorþe mest, he is slouȝ ase þe Asse..Of muche þouȝt, of luyte speche.
1600 W. Shakespeare Midsummer Night's Dream i. ii. 63 Pray you.., giue it mee: for I am slowe of studie. View more context for this quotation
1673 J. Milton Psalm LXXXV in Poems (new ed.) 158 Then will he come, and not be slow His footsteps cannot err.
1683 R. Boyle Let. 2 Oct. in Corr. (2001) V. 429 I am sorry I must informe you, that the Printer here has been, on his part, exceeding slow.
1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Georgics iii, in tr. Virgil Wks. 118 The Victim Ox..Sunk of himself,..Preventing the slow Sacrificer's Hand. View more context for this quotation
a1722 J. Lauder Decisions (1759) I. 14 Ordinarily Mr. Gideon was in the rear of all their [witches'] dances, and beat up those that were slow.
1736 R. Ainsworth Thes. Linguæ Latinæ I. (at cited word) He is naturally slow in speech, and very dull.
1785 W. Cowper Task iii. 505 Experience, slow preceptress, teaching oft The way to glory by miscarriage foul.
1828 C. Lamb Detached Thoughts on Bks. in Elia 2nd Ser. 185 Seldom-readers are slow readers.
1854 Fraser's Mag. 49 372 Whether he ought to be slower, more explanatory, more systematic, more resumptive.
1964 J. M. Argyle Psychol. & Social Probl. viii. 107 A production line must go at the speed of the slowest man.
1993 S. D. Cameron Sniffing Coast 18 I was slow and clumsy at sail changing.
2000 A. Campbell Nessman 47 The old man was a slow, deliberate worker, far too slow for the girl's liking.
c. Medicine. Of the pulse, respiration, etc.: having a rate that is lower than normal.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > the body > vascular system > circulation > pulsation > [adjective] > types of pulsation
slowa1398
stronga1398
throbbinga1450
systematical1658
long1671
natant1707
undose1707
vermiculose1707
exalted1742
salienta1791
inciduous1822
fluttering1834
sharp1843
sluggish1843
tricrotic1876
tricrotous1877
bounding1879
short1898
quadrigeminal1906
plateau1923
a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add. 27944) (1975) I. iii. xxiv. 127 Olde men hauen þe contrarye puls, litil, slouȝ, feble.
1621 R. Burton Anat. Melancholy i. iii. i. i. 232 Their pulse rare and slow, except it be of the Carotides which is very strong.
1685 tr. T. Willis London Pract. Physick 391 The chief Symptoms of this Disease, are Sleep and Forgetfulness; a cessation of every other knowing, or spontaneous function, an uneven and slow respiration, a Fever, and often the affect growing worse, Cramps, leapings of the Tendons, [etc.].
1782 tr. C. Le Roy Observ. Prognostic Acute Dis. i. ii. 38 Slow respiration, the intervals of which, are every moment more and more lengthened out, is the immediate precursor of death.
1808 Literary Panorama Dec. 565 I have said that more than once I saw unequivocal signs of a very slow respiration.
1912 Brit. Med. Jrnl. 30 Mar. 713/2 The patient was a man of feeble physique and slow metabolism.
2014 @LexpetronE 17 June in twitter.com (accessed 13 May 2020) Apparently I have a slow pulse...well doc, I'm not dead yet so I guess that's a good thing.
d. Of a song or piece of music: having a slow tempo (often with implications of solemnity, mournfulness, or sensuality).
ΚΠ
1653 Ld. Brouncker tr. R. Descartes Excellent Compend. Musick xi. 47 These last Dissonances ought to be avoided in relation; at least, when slow and soft Musick is made.
1655 Duchess of Newcastle Philos. & Physical Opinions ccvii. 168 Slow soft notes, onely on the tenors, are a sad relation, sorrowful laments, [etc.].
1677 E. Coles Eng. Dict. (new ed.) Almain, a German, also a slow aire in Musick.
1757 T. Gray Ode I i. iii, in Odes 7 Slow melting strains their Queen's approach declare.
1811 Sporting Mag. 38 220 The music at first is slow, but, as the Waltzers get animated, it rises to a jig.
1895 World 4 Dec. 27/1 I could see the conductor of the orchestra waiting eagerly for the word ‘mother’—the cue for the slow music—and I was, oh! so thankful when it came.
1926 G. B. Shaw Translations & Tomfooleries 78 You were not found..with the limelight streaming on your white face, and the band playing slow music.
1949 L. Feather Inside Be-bop i. 9 Dizzy..changed it from a slow ballad to a jump-tempo instrumental.
1997 New Yorker 2 June 34/2 A kind of jazz singer who likes to perform slow, late-night, husky-voiced versions of ‘I Can't Get Started’ and ‘Body and Soul’.
2002 R. Avery & D. Marsh Soaring where Christ has Led 33 If we do a slow song or anthem, we do it in a very heavy way, emphasizing the beat, underscoring the intensity.
e. Of trade, business, etc.: characterized by few sales or customers; slack; not brisk.
ΘΚΠ
society > trade and finance > [adjective] > good or bad (of trade)
well-traded1609
sulke1636
quicka1687
dull1705
brisk1719
roaring1731
rousing1767
slow1823
briskish1864
upwith1864
excited1878
turnaway1943
society > occupation and work > business affairs > [adjective] > of business: slack
slack1813
slow1823
1823 Baldwin's London Weekly Jrnl. 31 May Pigs a slow trade, except for fleshy shoats.
1887 Daily News 7 Feb. 2/5 Good sound samples not plentiful,..and the trade slow all round.
1903 Times 1 Dec. 35 Business in flannel was slow.
1992 Canad. Living Aug. (Suppl.) 8 Revenue Canada doesn't care that probate or a slow real estate market has tied the assets up.
1999 K. Sampson Powder 397 Ticket sales had been slow, but the promoters expected a good walk-up.
2000 J. Stevens-Arce Soulsaver xx. 88 Business is slow—only seventy-five, maybe eighty, customers this early.
2005 Times 20 May (Bricks & Mortar section) 2/2 The Costa del Sol is slow at the moment—prices are at the upper level.
f. Of a period of time, esp. one spent working: characterized by a lack of incident or activity. Cf. slow news day.
ΚΠ
1945 Roche Rev. Jan. 149/2 It was a slow morning. In fact, no patients appeared for the first half hour.
1998 Harper's Mag. Apr. 28/1 Just when we thought it would be a slow night, we followed some SPD cars to a scene in Seattle's Central District.
2005 C. Lambert Three Fortunes in One Cookie xii. 124 It's really slow today. Only a few women this morning. I think they were mostly getting out of the rain.
2009 J. Kellerman True Detectives i. 2 Slow shift; the usual drunk and disorderlies at Mexican dance halls on Vermont, a couple of false-alarm burglary calls.
5.
a. Of a person: not readily roused or moved to anger or some other emotion or tendency. Also with in or infinitive.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > emotion > calmness > unexcitability > [adjective]
slowc1384
imperturbablea1475
sober-minded1534
well-staid1550
settled1557
sober1564
steady1602
unprovokable1646
good-tempered1685
inirritable1794
well-adjusted1809
unvolatile1823
inexcitable1828
unrufflable1828
churchwardenly1830
unruffable1837
unexcitable1839
unrousable1842
well-tempered1852
middle-aged1853
unsqueamish1893
unflappable1958
c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Royal) (1850) James i. 19 Slowe to wraththe.
1539 T. Elyot Bankette of Sapience f. 46v Let euery man be swyft in hering, slowe in speche, and slowe in displeasure.
1593 T. Nashe Christs Teares f. 81 There is a certaine kind of good sloth, as to be slowe to anger, slowe to iudgement, slowe to reuenge.
1609 W. Shakespeare Sonnets xciv. sig. F4v Vnmooued, could, and to temptation slow . View more context for this quotation
1673 J. Milton Psalm LXXXVI in Poems (new ed.) 160 Thou Lord art..Slow to be angry.
1785 W. Cowper Task vi. 547 Heav'n, tho' slow to wrath, Is never with impunity defied.
1867 G. MacDonald Ann. Quiet Neighbourhood II. i. 2 A clergyman, of all men, should be slow to take offence.
1932 H. Kingsmill Frank Harris (1949) iv. 58 She was always slow to passion, very hard to rouse.
2000 C. Cross Rancher & Nanny vi. 84 Usually she was slow to anger, but now she felt her temper ignite.
b. Without construction. Of a person, a person's temper, disposition, etc.: not easily roused; not readily moved to anger or impatience. Cf. quick adj. 25b.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > emotion > calmness > [adjective]
eveneOE
still1340
unperturbeda1450
unmovedc1480
quietful1494
lowna1500
calma1568
calmya1586
unpassionatea1586
smartless1593
reposeful1594
dispassionate1595
recollected1595
unaffectedc1595
unpassioned?1605
unpassionated1611
collecteda1616
tranquila1616
untouched1616
impassionate1621
composed1628
dispassioneda1631
tranquillous1638
slow1639
serene1640
dispassionated1647
imperturbed1652
unruffled1654
reposing1655
equanimous1656
perplacid1660
placate1662
equal1680
collect1682
cooled1682
posed1693
sedate1693
impassive1699
uninflamed1714
unexcited1735
unalarmed1756
unfanned1764
unagitated1772
undistraught1773
recollected1792
equable1796
unfussy1823
take-it-easy1825
unflurried1854
cool1855
comfortable1856
disimpassioned1860
tremorless1869
unpressured1879
unrippled1883
ice-cool1891
unrattled1891
Zen-likea1908
unrestless1919
steadyish1924
ataractic1941
relaxed1958
nonplussed1960
loose1968
Zenned-out1968
downtempo1972
mellowed1977
de-stressed1999
1639 S. Du Verger tr. J.-P. Camus Admirable Events 55 So is it with slow, heavy, and timorous humors, they must have time to increase their choller.
1859 G. Cupples Two Frigates xviii. 299 Peaceable habits were..joined with a slow temper.
1946 Daily Mail 14 Sept. 2/7 A people [sc. the British] regarded throughout the world as slow, easy-going, patient.
2005 R. Nadelson Red Hook (2006) xviii.194 She had a slow temper; she almost never lost it.
†c. With to: inattentive to, or heedless of, a specified thing. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > inattention > [adjective] > of or to something
recklesseOE
regardless1578
slow1667
unconcerned1667
unheeding1795
unrecking1824
irregardless1912
the world > action or operation > manner of action > carelessness > [adjective] > careless or heedless > of, to, or with something
recklesslOE
unthoughtfulc1485
inconsiderate1607
desperatea1616
wretchless1661
slow1667
unconcerned1667
1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost iii. 193 To prayer, repentance, and obedience due,..Mine eare shall not be slow . View more context for this quotation
1746 P. Francis tr. Horace Art of Poetry in P. Francis & W. Dunkin tr. Horace Epistles 273 Rough to Reproof, and slow to future Cares.
6.
a. Of a fire: that burns slowly or gently; gentle. Also of heat: moderate in intensity; gentle.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > properties of materials > temperature > heat > burning > a fire > [adjective] > slow or gentle
softa1400
slowa1425
soakingc1450
a1425 (a1399) Forme of Cury (BL Add.) 22 in C. B. Hieatt & S. Butler Curye on Inglysch (1985) 102 (MED) Lat it seeþ warly with a slowe fyre.
1604 E. Grimeston tr. J. de Acosta Nat. & Morall Hist. Indies ii. vii. 96 Gold and silver, which wee refine with quicke-silver, the fire being small and slow.
1662 J. Davies tr. A. Olearius Voy. & Trav. Ambassadors 64 Being rather a moderate slow heat than an excessive scorching.
1769 E. Raffald Experienced Eng. House-keeper iv. 125 Stew them over a slow fire.
1811 A. T. Thomson London Dispensatory iii. 650 Distilling the charge..by a slow and gradually increased heat.
1840 R. H. Dana Two Years before Mast xxix. 98 We..made a slow fire of charcoal, birch bark, brimstone, and other matters.
1930 A. Ransome Swallows & Amazons (1962) xiii. 147 The slower the fire the better the charcoal.
1984 J. Kelman Busconductor Hines (1992) ii. 70 Break up mince with wooden spoon. Put pot on slow heat that it doesnt sizzle too much.
2007 T: N.Y. Times Style Mag. 23 Sept. 94/2 (advt.) Stewed chicken or goat..cooked on a slow fire in its own juices.
b. Of an oven: of such a temperature that it cooks food slowly.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > food > food manufacture and preparation > equipment for food preparation > stove or cooker > [adjective] > slow (of oven)
slow1723
1723 J. Nott Cook's & Confectioner's Dict. sig. C2 Let it be bak'd in a slow Oven, and then turn it upside down, on a Plate, for a second Course.
1846 A. Soyer Gastron. Regenerator 571 Place them in a slow oven to bake.
1862 Internat. Exhib.: Illustr. Catal. Industr. Dept. II. xxxi. §6103 The oven may be kept ‘slow’ or raised at pleasure for baking bread.
1917 F. Klickmann Between Larch-woods & Weir xiii. 242 She had told Dick to put the patties into a slow oven for ten or twelve minutes before eating.
2020 Wilts. Gaz. & Herald (Nexis) 4 Sept. The meat..must surely have been roasted for a very long time in a slow oven to reach such a peak of taste and melt-in-the-mouth texture.
†7. Having a dull edge; blunt. Obsolete (English regional (Yorkshire) in later use). [This sense is prominent among cognates in other in the Germanic languages: see main etymology section.]
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > shape > bluntness > [adjective]
dulta1225
blunt1398
obtuse?a1425
dullc1440
slow1440
obtusedc1487
retuse1654
dubbed1747
Promptorium Parvulorum (Harl. 221) 458 Slaw, or dul of egge, ebes, obtusus.
1904 Eng. Dial. Dict. V. 539/1 T' knife is slow.
†8. colloquial. Cf. fast adj. 9.
a. Behind the times; out of fashion; not smart or up-to-date. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > time > relative time > the past > oldness or ancientness > [adjective] > old-fashioned or antiquated
moth-frettenOE
antiquate?a1425
antique?1532
rusty1549
moth-eaten1551
musty1575
worm-eatenc1575
overyear1584
out of date1589
old-fashioned1592
out of date1592
worm-eat1597
old-fashion1599
ancient1601
outdated1616
out-of-fashion1623
over-aged1623
superannuateda1634
thorough-old1639
overdateda1641
trunk-hosea1643
antiquitated1645
antiquated1654
out-of-fashioned1671
unmodern1731
of the old school1749
auld-farrant1750
old-fangled1764
fossila1770
fogram1772
passé1775
unmodernized1775
oxidated1791
moss-covered1792
square-toeda1797
old-fashionable1807
pigtail1817
behind the times1826
slow1827
fossilized1828
rococo1836
antiquish1838
old-timey1850
out of season1850
moss-grown1851
old style1858
antiqued1859
pigtaily1859
prehistoric1859
backdated1862
played1864
fossiled1866
bygone1869
mossy-backed1870
old-worldly1878
past-time1889
outmoded1896
dated1900
brontosaurian1909
antiquey1926
horse-and-buggy1926
vintage1928
Neolithic1934
time-warped1938
demoded1941
steam age1941
hairy1946
old school1946
rinky-dink1946
time warp1954
Palaeolithic1957
retardataire1958
throwback1968
wally1969
antwacky1975
1827 Sporting Mag. Nov. 29/1 Long courtships are stupid things, and voted slow.
1842 ‘Nimrod’ Life Sportsman ii. 38 John Hawkes and myself always ride in leathers, though people say ‘it looks slow’.
1857 T. Hughes Tom Brown's School Days i. iv. 89 Slow place, sir; slow place; off the main road.
b. Dull or tedious in character; boring, tiresome. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > emotion > suffering > feeling of weariness or tedium > [adjective] > wearisome or tedious
dreicha1300
alangec1330
joylessa1400
tedious1412
wearifulc1454
weary1465
laboriousa1475
tiresome?a1513
irksome1513
wearisome1530
woodena1566
irkful1570
flat1573
leaden1593
barren1600
soaked1600
unlively1608
dulla1616
irking1629
drearisome1633
drear1645
plumbous1651
fatigable1656
dreary1667
uncurious1685
unenlivened1692
blank1726
disinteresting1737
stupid1748
stagnant1749
trist?1756
vegetable1757
borish1766
uninteresting1769
unenlivening1774
oorie1787
wearying1796
subjectless1803
yawny1805
wearing1811
stuffy1813
sloomy1820
tediousome1823
arid1827
lacklustrous1834
boring1839
featureless1839
slow1840
sodden1853
ennuying1858
dusty1860
cabbagy1861
old1864
mouldy1876
yawnful1878
drab1880
dehydrated1884
interestless1886
jay1889
boresome1895
stodgy1895
stuffy1895
yawnsome1900
sludgy1901
draggy1922
blah1937
nowhere1940
drack1945
stupefactive1970
schleppy1978
wack1986
1840 C. J. Lever Charles O'Malley xxix, in Dublin Univ. Mag. Aug. 170/2 ‘How very slow all this,’ thought I.
1848 Punch 15 19 All books are slow,..all domestic, all quiet enjoyments are slow.
1880 Boy's Own Paper 11 Dec. 167/2 The visits to Mr. Newcome were of course pleasant enough, but it was slow being cooped up a whole Sunday with two old people.
c. Of a person: dull, insipid; unexciting; not fashionable. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > emotion > suffering > feeling of weariness or tedium > [adjective] > wearisome or tedious > of persons
weary1549
wearisome1573
musty1603
slow1840
anoraked1960
1840 C. J. Lever Charles O'Malley xxix, in Dublin Univ. Mag. Aug. 168/2 Slow fellows, like them, must find any place stupid.
1849 A. R. Smith Pottleton Legacy xxvi. 281 He was a good creature, but too ‘slow’.
1887 S. W. Cooper Confessions of Society Man xi. 144 I have many times heard girls, whom I knew were pure and good, say—‘Oh! I would not marry a man unless he had seen the world,’ or ‘He's a little fast, you know, but such a charming fellow,’ or ‘I don't want a slow man, he's apt to go wrong after he marries.’
1922 S. Lewis Babbitt xxix. 337 They were Bohemians and urbanites, accustomed to all the luxuries of Zenith: dance-halls, movie-theaters, and road-houses; and in a cynical superiority to people who were ‘slow’ or ‘tightwad’ they cackled: [etc.].
9. Medicine. Of an organ, esp. the heart: functioning (or thought to be functioning) at a rate that is lower than normal. Cf. sense 4c.
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > ill health > [adjective] > in state of ill health or diseased > torpid or sluggish
languish1552
languid1595
lethargized1614
languent1696
lymphatic1834
slow1865
1865 Med. Times & Gaz. 18 Mar. 278/1 Its physiological action [sc. digitalis] as a stimulant may be explained by supposing that in the case of the slow heart it improves the molecular arrangement of the sarcous elements.
1896 Daily News 26 May 6/4 In the case of one's having a slow liver..the jerking might, perhaps, be of some service.
1923 J. H. Kellogg Colon Hygiene (new ed.) 129 A slow colon must be given time, especially when by a change of diet and attention to colon hygiene it just beginning in something like a normal manner.
1988 M. Godfrey Myst. in Frozen Lands vi. 36 Slow bowels are a constant curse for everyone on board.
2011 T. Thomas Give or take Pebble 178 His breathing was weak, he had a dry cough, and his heart was slow.
II. Of an action, process, etc.: that takes a long time, and related uses.
10.
a. Of a process or activity: taking or requiring a comparatively long time; very gradual.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > manner of action > slowness of action or operation > [adjective]
lateeOE
slackc1000
slowc1225
heavya1400
lent14..
slowfulc1400
sloth1412
latesomea1425
sluggedc1430
sluggingc1430
tardy1483
lingeringa1547
tarde1547
sleuth1567
snailish1581
slow-moving1592
lagging1597
snail-paced1597
snail-slow1600
slow-pacing1616
snail-like1639
sluggish1640
ignave1657
languishing1693
slow-stepping1793
lentitudinous1801
somnolent1812
slow-coachish1844
tardigradous1866
vermigrade1938
slow-cooking1968
c1225 (?c1200) Hali Meiðhad (Bodl.) (1940) l. 539 (MED) His waxunge se lat, & se slaw his þriftre.
1494 Loutfut MS f. 109 in Dict. Older Sc. Tongue (at cited word) Thair batellis in special quhilk is within listis man for man othir be slaw batall or batell of plesaunce.
1565 T. Cooper Thesaurus Exitus segnis, slow death.
1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost x. 692 These changes in the Heav'ns, though slow, produc'd Like change on Sea and Land. View more context for this quotation
1781 E. Gibbon Decline & Fall II. xix. 156 He had recourse to the slower but more certain operations of a regular siege.
1795 J. Sinclair Statist. Acct. Scotl. XIV. 233 Slow growth makes timber fine in the reed.
1811 J. Austen Sense & Sensibility III. x. 203 Marianne's illness, though weakening in its kind, had not been long enough to make her recovery slow.
1848 People's Press May 69/1 The devout and pious mother of the young bridesgroom had been in a slow decline.
1949 ‘J. Tey’ Brat Farrar iv. 33 The slow realisation that his leg had mended ‘short’.
1989 A. Aird 1990 Good Pub Guide 582 Service can be slow on a busy weekend.
1996 Counsel Mar. 18/2 Although it got off to a slow start, solicitor advocacy is growing steadily and will continue to grow.
2009 N.Y. Times (National ed.) 5 Nov. b8/1 The boxes were awkward to set up and movie downloads were painfully slow.
b. With a process or activity implied. Of a thing: taking a comparatively long time to develop, to be made, etc.
ΚΠ
1597 W. Shakespeare Richard III ii. iv. 15 I would not grow so fast: Because sweete flowers are slow, and weedes make haste. View more context for this quotation
1640 Earl of Strafford Let. 12 Apr. (1739) II. 410 My Weakness is such, and my Amends so slow, that I must be forced to keep to my Litter.
1775 G. Stuart tr. J. L. de Lolme Constit. Eng. Advt. p. xiii These profits I indeed thought to be but scanty and slow.
1798 W. S. Landor Gebir iii. 251 Some Sowed the slow olive for a race unborn.
1847 R. W. Emerson Poems 50 Slow structures, stone by stone Built in an age.
1860 C. Dickens Uncommerc. Traveller in All Year Round 25 Feb. 419/2 Held out at arm's length at frequent intervals and soundingly slapped, like a slow lot at a sale.
1906 G. A. B. Dewar Faery Year 242 Another fortnight, and all but the slow oak woods will be in a glow.
1999 Austral. Financial Rev. (Nexis) 8 May 13 This year and the next will be tough and revenue is slow at the moment.
11.
a. Of an illness, esp. a fever: that does not develop or resolve rapidly; chronic. Now chiefly historical.
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > ill health > a disease > fever > [adjective] > other fevers
slowc1300
hectic1398
remitting1583
altern1594
hectical1614
hective1642
remittent1670
imputrid1684
intercurrent1684
aestuous1708
angiotenic1799
anabatic1811
masked1833
hyperpyretic1876
hyperpyrexial1896
hyperpyrexic1897
tularaemic1954
c1300 St. Wolston (Laud) l. 197 in C. Horstmann Early S.-Eng. Legendary (1887) 76 (MED) A slouȝ feuere him cam on, þat ne nam him nouȝt ful strongue.
1547 C. Langton Very Brefe Treat. Phisick ii. iii. sig. E.vi A quicke or sharpe sicknesse, & a sicknes that is long & slow, may not be measured bothe a like.
1596 J. Dalrymple tr. J. Leslie Hist. Scotl. (1888) I. 5 That sair seiknes..cam nevir till ws, nochtthelesse, continual caldes, albeit slawe.
1725 N. Robinson New Theory of Physick 291 Of the Cure of slow Fevers, attended with Hectic Heats.
1776 E. Gibbon Decline & Fall I. xiii. 392 He soon contracted a slow illness.
1822 J. M. Good Study Med. II. 188 The first variety..has..been commonly distinguished by the name of low or slow nervous fever.
1897 T. C. Allbutt et al. Syst. Med. III. 82 A dull slow swelling appears in the menaced joints.
1912 Brit. Med. Jrnl. 2 Nov. 1185/2 Pigs acquire with each virus a slow infection which terminates in recovery.
2014 C. Hamlin More than Hot v. 132 The linkage of these fashionable febriculae with the dangerous low and slow fevers marked by prostration.
b. Medicine. Designating any of a group of diseases caused by viruses or virus-like agents which are characterized by a long period of latency and a course that is steadily progressive after the onset of symptoms, often with a fatal outcome; esp. in slow viral disease, slow virus disease.Some of these diseases were later recognized to be caused by prions.Cf. later slow virus n. at Compounds 2.Later examples of slow virus disease probably represent use of slow virus as a modifier.
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > ill health > a disease > bacterial or viral disorders > [adjective] > viral disorders
rickettsial1925
West Nile virus1940
West Nile1943
Coxsackie1949
slow1954
Norwalk1977
1954 B. Sigurdsson in Brit. Vet. Jrnl. 110 350 If the word chronic is taken to mean not only protracted, but also something which lingers on, has an irregular and unpredictable course and may end in any one of several different ways, then the expression should not be used about the diseases I have discussed here; these infections should perhaps rather be called slow infections.
1967 Brit. Med. Jrnl. 22 July 251/1 Transmission studies with multiple sclerosis material..have recently led to an interest in ‘slow’ virus diseases.
1976 R. H. Kimberlin Slow Virus Dis. Animals & Man i. 5 One major distinguishing feature of slow diseases..was this: once clinical signs of disease have appeared the disease then follows a regular progressive course which always ends in serious illness and usually death.
2014 A. C. Tselis & J. Boos Neurovirology 25/1 While not viral in nature, it [sc. Creutzfeldt-Jacob disease] contributed greatly to the excitement of ‘slow viral diseases’ in the 1960s and 1970s.
12. Of a period of time: passing slowly or heavily. Also in extended use of a clock: recording the slow passing of time.
ΘΚΠ
the world > time > [adjective] > passing or elapsing > passing slowly (of time)
slow1565
slow-paced1598
1565 T. Cooper Thesaurus Anni segnes, slow yeres passyng away in idlenesse.
1597 W. Shakespeare Richard II i. iii. 144 The slie slow houres shall not determinate The datelesse limite of thy deere exile. View more context for this quotation
a1657 W. Mure Wks. (1898) I. 17 The too slou day To steil away.
1717 A. Pope Wks. 401 To muse, and spill her solitary Tea, Or o'er cold coffee trifle with the spoon, Count the slow clock, and dine exact at noon.
1752 N. Cotton Visions in Verse (ed. 3) 120 Carus with Pains, and Sickness worn, Chides the slow Night, and sighs for Morn.
1792 S. Rogers Pleasures Mem. i. 102 When the slow dial gave a pause to care.
a1822 P. B. Shelley Julian & Maddalo in Posthumous Poems (1824) 21 As slow years pass, a funereal train.
1842 Ld. Tennyson Love & Duty in Poems (new ed.) II. 85 The slow sweet hours that bring us all things good, The slow sad hours that bring us all things ill.
1941 S. Cloete Hill of Doves (1969) xxvii. 445 In the slow days of waiting more and more Free-Staters came in.
2002 W. Gruber On all Sides Nowhere vii. 72 We worked in heat and dust past midday and through the long slow hours of late afternoon.
13.
a. Of a thing, system, etc.: not rapid in operation or effect; taking a relatively long time to perform a particular function.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > manner of action > slowness of action or operation > [adjective] > slow in operation or effect
slow1590
the world > time > a suitable time or opportunity > untimeliness > delay or postponement > [adjective] > slow to take effect
slow1590
1590 W. Clever Flower of Phisicke 110 If colde medicines be slowe, they may be remedied and preferred (after the skill of the Chirurgian) to a more fuller and larger estate and degree.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Cymbeline (1623) i. v. 10 These most poysonous Compounds, Which are the moouers of a languishing death: But though slow, deadly. View more context for this quotation
1794 A. Radcliffe Myst. of Udolpho IV. xvii. 390 A slow poison was administered.
1796 E. Burke Let. Dec. in Corr. (1970) IX. 172 The work will be very slow in its operation but it is certain in its effect.
1867 C. L. Bloxam Chemistry 418 Touch-paper or slow port-fire, which consists of paper soaked in a weak solution of saltpetre and dried.
1956 D. E. Worcester & W. G. Schaeffer Growth & Culture of Lat. Amer. (1962) xxxiv. 778 By the time the law was enacted the abolitionists were no longer satisfied with such a slow solution to the problem.
1960 F. G. Mann & B. C. Saunders Pract. Org. Chem. (ed. 4) i. 12 A ‘hot-water funnel’ is a slower and less efficient apparatus for filtering hot solutions.
2000 Independent 21 Feb. ii. 11/5 It is the first games console to be connected to the Internet as standard, but Sega's president..lamented during his keynote speech that the Internet was so slow.
2015 C. Thurber & J. Ritsema in G. Schubert et al. Treat. Geophysics (ed. 2) I. 317/2 [They] will still complain that their computers are too slow and their memory and storage capabilities are not adequate!
b. Photography. Of a lens: having a small aperture and thus requiring a long exposure time to produce a satisfactory image; (of a plate, film, photographic paper, etc.) having a relatively low sensitivity or speed of reaction to the action of light. Cf. fast adj. 13.See also slow contact adj. at Compounds 2.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > visual arts > photography > camera > parts and accessories of camera > [adjective] > types of lens
flat field1841
wide-angle1865
slow1867
wide-angled1873
fast1877
rapid1878
fish-eye1882
sharp1883
symmetrical1890
telephotographic1891
telephotographic lens1891
narrow-angle1893
stigmatic1896
tele-negative1898
tele-positive1898
bloomed1945
soft1945
wide-field1950
1867 tr. D. van Monckhoven Photogr. Optics vi. 127 This necessity of using very small diaphragms has..the effect of rendering the objective [lens] very slow.
1877 Photogr. News 1 June 262/1 He had left his rapid plates at home, but instead had a few slow plates that he felt sure of.
1915 D. Grant Man. Photogr. 74 ‘Slow’ papers give plucky results from flat negatives.
1973 Sci. Amer. Dec. 39/3 Telescopes such as the 100-inch reflector on Mount Wilson, which has a focal ratio of f/5, are quite ‘slow’, that is, they require long exposure times.
1981 Pop. Photogr. May 97/3 I suggest using a normal-contrast glossy or semiglossy paper, whether it's slow, contact-speed paper or a fast, enlarging-speed one.
2006 J. Becker Compl. Guide Low-Budget Feature Filmmaking 157 Slow film stocks have deeper, richer colors, less grain, and more contrast.
14.
a. Of a product, service, etc.: that invites unhurried appreciation; that is made in a sustainable manner, utilizing local or traditional methods as opposed to those of mass industry.Recorded earliest in slow food, with reference to the international non-profit organization founded in 1989 (see slow food n. 1).
ΚΠ
1989 N.Y. Times 15 Nov. c10/1 The stated objective of Slow Food is to preserve worthy local gastronomic traditions that have been endangered by standardization and industrialization.
2004 R. Matos in K. Weiermair & C. Mathies Tourism & Leisure Industry vi. 102 The concept of sustainable development, which includes economic, environmental, and social sustainability, should be perceived as a pillar of the philosophy of slow tourism.
2016 Observer 20 Mar. (Mag.) 64/2 Part of the ethos of the slow city is to reconnect distinctive regions with their food, their nature, and their craft producers to form a bulwark against homogenised, globalised culture.
2020 Financial Express (New Delhi) 14 Mar. The movement towards slow fashion has been fairly recent, particularly among millennials, who are realising that their buying pattern is not eco-friendly.
b. Of a form of art or entertainment: that invites deep contemplation or quiet reflection, and which typically has a subtle, minimalist aesthetic, a languid pace, or soothing content.In quot. 1992 in a review of the ‘Slow Art: Painting in New York Now’ exhibition that opened at the MoMA P.S. 1 Museum in New York in April 1992.
ΚΠ
1992 N.Y. Mag. 25 May 85/3 The fashion-enslaved Whitney Biennial-type exhibition is always—rightfully—attacked for its People-magazine aesthetics... So here we have the alternative:..slow art.
2006 Maclean's 3 Apr. 57/1 Some directors have made an avant-garde fetish of slow cinema.
2020 Daily Tel. (Nexis) 6 Apr. 30 Every evening this week, there's some truly meditative and nourishing slow radio in the form of five soundscapes from monastic life in Britain.
c. Of or relating to a cultural movement advocating a way of life characterized by unhurried appreciation, and the adoption of policies that promote sustainability, environmental protection, traditional practices, and local culture; designating such a movement.
ΚΠ
1997 Courier Mail (Queensland, Austral.) (Nexis) 19 Feb. 52/1 For a movement dedicated to taking your time, it has grown rapidly and now this ‘slow army’..has more than 50,000 members in 30 countries.
2020 @sallyannsbags 11 Jan. in twitter.com (accessed 14 Apr. 2020) At the core of the Slow Movement is the philosophy of wanting to do well & to do good. Quality is the priority, not quantity; sustainability, not speed; ethically produced, not cheaply made.
III. With reference to physical motion: that moves slowly, and related senses.
15.
a. Of a person, animal, or moving body: moving, flowing, or travelling at a low speed; taking a long time to go a comparatively short distance.
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > rate of motion > slowness > [adjective] > moving slowly
slowa1398
slow-movingc1450
slow-bellied1554
lazya1568
slow-footed1587
slow-paced1594
leaden-footed1596
snaily1596
snail-paced1597
dragglinga1599
leaden-heeled1598
ambling1600
slow-foot1607
sluggisha1616
slow-pacing1616
tortoise-paced1623
slow-going1634
leaden-stepping1645
tardigradous1652
tardigrade1656
snail-crawleda1658
dawdling1773
loitering1791–2
slow-stepping1793
creepy1794
lugging1816
tortoise-footed1818
crawling1820
creepy-crawly1858
slowing1877
lead-foot1896
soodling1951
a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add. 27944) (1975) II. xviii. xcvi. 1246 Sche [sc. þe ape]..is ycharged wiþ þat oþer [whelp] þat sitteþ on hire schuldres and is þe more slowe to renne.
?a1425 (c1400) Mandeville's Trav. (Titus C.xvi) (1919) 108 (MED) Saturne is slough [Fr. tardif] & litill mevynge.
c1500 (?a1437) Kingis Quair (1939) clv (MED) The slawe as, the druggar beste of pyne.
1590 E. Spenser Faerie Queene ii. vi. sig. R8 The waues thereof so slow and sluggish were, Engrost with mud.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Comedy of Errors (1623) i. i. 116 [They] would haue reft the Fishers of their prey, Had not their barke [printed backe] beene very slow of saile. View more context for this quotation
1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost iv. 173 Satan had journied on, pensive and slow . View more context for this quotation
1764 O. Goldsmith Traveller 16 The slow canal, the yellow blossom'd vale.
1852 W. M. Thackeray Henry Esmond I. vi. 143 In those days letters were slow of travelling.
1871 Princess Alice Mem. (1884) 274 The train..is the slowest I was ever in in my life.
1966 D. Francis Flying Finish xviii. 217 I put on full flap, maximum drag..retrimmed..felt the plane get slower and heavier.
1987 Quarterly (U.S.) Summer 47 Just before dawn, I saw a slow flock of dark-winged birds cut the sky.
1996 A. Templeton Past praying For (1997) x. 215 The traffic was slow. There was a hold-up on the motorway with roadworks.
2000 Outdoor Canada May 28/3 Current breaks—where fast water meets slow water—are where you find river walleye.
b. spec. Designating an animal belonging to a species or group characterized by comparatively slow movement.See also slow lemur n., slow loris n. at Compounds 2. In quot. 1833, referring to langurs or leaf-monkeys.
ΚΠ
1695 J. Petiver Musei Petiveriani ii. 18 Lacerta terrestris tardipes. The Slow-Eft.
1833 Proc. Zool. Soc. i. 75 What are the natural habits and food of these slow Monkeys, as M. F. Cuvier denominates the Semnopitheci?
1984 W. E. Burgess & H. R. Axelrod Fishes of Calif. & Western Mexico xxi. 2105 Aruma histrio (Jordan), the slow goby, is normally found in shallow areas and tide pools hiding under rocks or in deep crevices.
2009 J. P. Collins & M. L. Crump Extinction in our Times i. 17 Monitoring studies of the Gansu toad,..Inkiapo frog,..and Songpan slow frog (Nanorana pleskei)..have revealed declines in the populations of all 3 species.
16. Of physical movement: occurring or performed at a low speed; not quick, fast, or hurried.
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > rate of motion > slowness > [adjective] > unhurried (of movement)
softc1300
slowa1398
deliberate1575
leisurely1604
unhurrieda1774
leisure1809
downtempo1972
a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add. 27944) (1975) II. xviii. lxx. 1222 He [sc. Limax] crepeþ þough it be wiþ slowe paas.
?c1450 (a1388) tr. Richard of Wallingford Exafrenon (Digby) in J. D. North Wks. Richard of Wallingford (1976) I. 211 (MED) The Mone..is..of more vertue when she is of smert movynge than when she is of slawe mevynge.
a1500 ( J. Yonge tr. Secreta Secret. (Rawl.) (1898) 235 Whoso hath the Paas large and slow, he is..wel spedynge in al his dedys.
1513 G. Douglas tr. Virgil Æneid xii. vii. 7 With steppis slaw furth stalkand all in feyr.
c1540 J. Bellenden tr. Livy Hist. Rome (1901) I. i. xi. 64 Mecius..fled with slaw passage to þe montanis.
1623 W. Shakespeare & J. Fletcher Henry VIII i. i. 132 To climbe steepe hilles Requires slow pace at first. View more context for this quotation
1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost xii. 648 With wandring steps and slow . View more context for this quotation
1774 O. Goldsmith Hist. Earth VII. 222 The motion of this serpent is slow.
1837 New Sporting Mag. June 373 It was slow going for about a mile further.
1837 W. Irving Adventures Capt. Bonneville I. xvii. 286 It was a beautiful sight..to see the runners, as they are called, advancing in column, at a slow trot,..then dashing on at full speed.
1883 Electrician 8 Sept. 391/1 For slow rotations the magnetic effect of the induced currents is negligible because they are so weak.
1950 A. White Lost Traveller (1993) vii. ii. 296 When he filled his pipe, he did so with slower, almost fumbling movements, unlike the quick ramming she remembered so well.
2017 Indian Country Aug. 24/3 The steps move from fast to slow and the dancer is allowed to freestyle, but must stay with the beat.
17. Designating a low speed, tempo, or pace.
ΚΠ
1548 Hall's Vnion: Henry IV f. xvv Wherfore in greate haste and slowe spede, Lewes duke of Burbon was sent to Angiers.
1727 D. Defoe Syst. Magick i. ii. 44 Knowledge had its Gradations too, and tho' it must be confess'd it was at a very slow Rate, yet some advances they did make.
1763 J. Mac Intire Mil. Treat. Discipline Marine Forces 208 In exercising on the March, all Motions begin with the right Foot, either in slow, or quick Time, making one Motion for every Pace in slow Time.
1884 Encycl. Brit. XVII. 96 The first movement..is succeeded generally by one in a slow tempo.
1884 F. Jenkin in Jrnl. Soc. Arts 32 648/2 Telpher lines are adapted for the conveyance of minerals and other goods at a slow pace, and at a cheap rate.
1973 Gramophone Jan. 1319/3 Bishop's tempo is..marginally slower even than Barenboim's.
2006 Maritime Econ. & Logistics 8 270 Ships in port may be..moving at slow speeds through the harbor's waterway.
18.
a. Of the sun or its motion in the sky: lagging behind the position which is calculated for the mean sun, so that apparent solar time (as shown by a sundial) lags behind clock time. Formerly also †slow of (the) clock (obsolete). Cf. fast adj. 8b.
ΚΠ
1594 T. Blundeville Exercises vii. xliv. f. 343v The Sunne hath three motions, that is, slowe, swift and meane.
1741 Chambers's Cycl. (ed. 5) at Equinox As the sun's motion is unequal, that is, sometimes swifter, and sometimes slower,..it comes to pass, that there are about eight days more from the vernal, to the autumnal equinox, than from the autumnal to the vernal.
1802 T. Gale Electricity i. 50 The inequality of the earth's motion upon her axis..causes the sun to be, apparently, sometimes fast of clock, and sometimes slow of clock.
1849 H. N. Robinson Treat. Astron. v. 96 The sun being slow, it does not come to the meridian until 11m. 49 s. after the noon shown by a perfect clock.
1855 Lardner's Museum Sci. & Art V. 135 From the 25th December to the 15th April the sun is always slow.
1916 Pop. Sci. Monthly Mar. 433/2 Observe the position of the sun—whether fast or slow—according to your analemma.
2019 T. Timberlake & P. Wallace Finding our Place in Solar Syst. iv. 85 The true Sun..seems slowest at apogee A and fastest at perigee P.
b. Of a clock, watch, etc.: indicating a time earlier than the correct or standard time; behind in time. Frequently preceded or followed by an adverbial phrase of time, as in five minutes slow, slow by five minutes.
ΘΚΠ
the world > time > instruments for measuring time > [adjective] > fast, slow, or accurate
fast1683
slow1683
timekeeping1747
advanced1997
1683 (title) A table of the equation of days, shewing how much a good pendulum watch ought to be faster or slower than a true sun-dial, every day in the year.
1700 C. Leigh tr. R. Townley Let. in Nat. Hist. Lancs. ii. i. 27 Afterwards the Sun coming to the Meridian, by a long Meridian line I found the Clock was too slow by one Minute, and 42 seconds.
1714 W. Derham Artific. Clock-maker (ed. 3) xi. 139 By the Table, you see how many minutes, and seconds, the Dial is too fast, or too slow.
1886 J. Merrifield Naut. Astron. 165 The chronometer..is..fast when it shows a later time, and slow when it shows an earlier time than the true Greenwich mean time.
1919 ‘K. Mansfield’ Let. 1 Nov. (1993) III. 63 On the round table is a dirty egg cup full of ink, my watch (an hour slow) and a wooden tray holding a manuscript.
1961 A. Pannekoek Hist. Astron. (1989) xxviii. 282 After his arrival in Cayenne it appeared that the clock was slow by two minutes per day, and its pendulum had to be shortened.
1993 J. A. Hostetler Amish Soc. (ed. 4) v. 111 By keeping the clock either slower or faster than worldly time, the Amish effectively stay out of step with the world.
2004 J. M. Fischer Egg on Three Sticks lxii. 251 Eleven forty-one. I wonder if my clock is slow so I get up and check my watch on the dresser. Nope. Still eleven forty-one.
c. Of time (as reckoned by a particular system): behind or later than a specified standard time, or solar time, esp. by a specified amount. Cf. fast adj. 8c.Time zones west of the Greenwich meridian are slow with respect to Universal Time. Local solar time is behind standard time at any longitude west of the meridian that defines the time zone. It is also behind mean solar time during the part of the year when the sun is ‘slow’ (sense 18a).
ΘΚΠ
the world > time > reckoning of time > [adjective] > slow (of local time)
slow1846
1846 Aberdeen Jrnl. 20 May The mean time at Greenwich has been taken as the standard, to which the time of other places, whether east, or west, is reduced... Hence, between Dundee and Greenwich, a difference of nearly 12 minutes slow.
1891 Proc. Amer. Soc. Civil Engineers 17 116 Upon maps in the English Bradshaw's Railway Guide and elsewhere the meridians of longitude are numbered in minutes of time ‘fast’ or ‘slow’.
1902 Irish Eccl. Rec. July 28 On Feb. 10 the true solar time is slower than the mean solar (clock) time by 15 minutes.
2000 I. R. Bartky Selling True Time vii. 98 Its gazetteer listing was 0Boston-24, Railway Time there being twenty-four minutes slower than Boston Time.
19. Designating a scheduled transport route in which the vehicle travels relatively slowly or stops at many intermediate stations; designating a vehicle on such a route. Also of a railway track: designed to be used by trains travelling relatively slowly or stopping at many intermediate stations. Contrasted with fast or express.See also slow train n.
ΘΚΠ
society > travel > rail travel > railway system or organization > [adjective] > types of track or rail
slow1799
fast1814
fish-jointed1855
prismoidal1874
broad-gauged1881
monorail1885
unballasted1887
sleepered1894
monoline1902
wide gauge1982
1799 R. B. Thomas Farmer's Almanack 1800 sig. F5 List of Stages that run from Boston, and the Places from which they start... New York Slow Mail for Suffield and Hartford sets off from Daggett's Inn every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, at 4, A.M. and arrives..at New York the 4th day, at 11 o'clock, A.M.
1820 National Advocate (N.Y.) 5 Sept. The Company also continue to run the slow line by the Steam-boat to New-Brunswick.
1898 Daily News 1 Mar. 5/5 In passing from the slow to the main line the engine fouled the points.
1969 Amer. Art Jrnl. 1 92 In 1870 he took the Lightning Express to New York and the slow boat to Europe.
1991 Mod. Railways Apr. 182/2 The lines through Purley consist of four tracks running virtually north-south, with the up fast on the west side paired with the down fast, and the up and down slow lines on the east side.
2002 D. Harper et al. China (Lonely Planet) (ed. 8) 414/1 The express bus to Chángchūn is Y30 (11/ 2 hours), the slow bus is Y14.5 (21/ 2 hours).
2017 G. Pedler Rail Operations viewed from S. Devon xxxiv. 155/1 Semi-fast trains in each direction can switch from fast to slow tracks or from slow to fast tracks, by facing crossovers without interfering with the paths of trains of the opposite direction.
20. Causing or tending to cause slowness of movement or a decrease in speed; esp. (in sporting contexts) designating a surface likely to make the ball, puck, etc., travel slowly or to prevent competitors from travelling fast (see also slow track n. 1).
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > rate of motion > [adjective] > decreased in speed > causing decrease in speed
retarding1654
retardative1705
retardive1787
slow1838
retardatory1843
the world > movement > rate of motion > slowness > [adjective] > causing slowness
slow1838
1838 J. Rooke Geol. as Sci. vi. 287 Nor would the speedy [railway] line exceed in real length the slow one. We may fairly ask, why has a line so defective been adopted?
1868 John Lillywhite's Cricketers' Compan. (ed. 24) 61 The wickets were in excellent order, though somewhat ‘slow’ for Gravesend.
1873 J. Bennett & ‘Cavendish’ Billiards 77 On a slow table a No. 2 is required.
1901 Juvenile Instructor (Salt Lake City) 1 Oct. 586/1 More sand corroborated the driver's statement that it was a ‘slow road’, but good cheer and conversation materially lessened the tedium.
1904 Field 6 Feb. 202/3 A system..lacking directness on a slow and heavy turf.
1962 Knoxville (Tennessee) News-Sentinel 24 Nov. 6/7 Don Labelle had backhanded the puck to the Knoxville center and it almost came to a halt on the ‘slow’ ice.
2017 Times (Nexis) 30 Oct. (Sport section) The slow court of the Singapore Indoor Stadium suited her.
21. Nuclear Physics. Relating to, involving, or utilizing neutrons with relatively low kinetic energy (see slow neutron n. at Compounds 2). Cf. fast adj. 14.See also slow reactor n. at Compounds 2.
ΚΠ
1943 E. Konopinski et al. Crit. Amounts Uranium Compounds 9 σff and σsf are the cross sections for fast and slow fission per molecule respectively.
1959 Listener 19 Nov. 872/1 At slow or ‘thermal’ speeds neutron capture by nuclei of Uranium 238 is less important.
1978 Univ. Leeds Rev. 21 53 Even though scientists by 1940 believed this slow reaction would be useless for a bomb, it held out to them the hope of nuclear power.
1988 D. C. Look & H. J. Sauer Engin. Thermodynamics (SI ed.) ix. 348 Several light water breeder reactors..are in operation now, and are referred to as ‘slow’ because the fuel (thorium) can react only with slow or low-energy neutrons.

Phrases

P1. Proverb. slow and (also but) steady (also sure) wins the race: success is achieved through sustained or patient effort. Also in elliptical phrases.With allusion to the fable of Aesop in which a tortoise wins a race against a hare by continuing on to the finish line while the hare, confident of victory, takes a nap.
ΚΠ
1755 Connoisseur (1756) No. 90. 546 Though I own thy quicker parts, Things are not always won by starts: You may deride my awkward pace, But slow and steady wins the race.
1840 Visit to Bury St. Edmunds (1845) v. 93 In poor Sandford's cottage did I resolve to follow the good rules of your Society: the task for some time will not be easy, but slow and sure wins the race, does it not?
1899 E. Phillpotts Loup-Garou! 225 Don't dash at this thing like a mad bull at a gate. Slow and steady is the plan.
1903 N.Y. Times 3 May 10/3 Slow but sure wins the race; but the young man who is the proud possessor of a written recommendation to that effect still is looking for an employer.
2017 M. Sugiura It's not like it's Secret vii. 48 It's about endurance. You know, slow and steady wins the race.
P2. North American colloquial and regional. in a slow hurry: at a measured, unrushed pace; in a state of slow but steady progress. Cf. to hasten slowly at hasten v. Phrases.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > manner of action > slowness of action or operation > [phrase] > without haste
in (good) leisurec1315
by leisurec1386
soft and fairc1391
to go slow1664
in a slow hurry1849
1849 Knickerbocker July 17 We never sot down to an essay of his which was n't perfectly unique and readable-through, and dashed off with a concealed art and in a slow hurry.
1962 L. Floren Last Gun xv. 214 The world was going to hell then. It's still going to hell. But it sure gets there in a slow hurry!
2014 Toronto Star (Nexis) 20 Sept. a21 Commuters stuck behind him fume at the pace of his tractor. ‘They're in a big hurry to get nowhere and I'm in a slow hurry to get somewhere,’ the lifelong farmer explains.
P3. slow news day and variants: a specified period of time in which there are few events of sufficient interest to be worth mentioning in the news, and hence characterized by coverage of irrelevant or frivolous matters.
ΚΠ
1895 Daily Banner Times (Greencastle, Indiana) 22 June These are some fables..that our contemporary might rake up for a slow news day.
1969 Lafayette (Lafayette College, Easton, Pa.) 3 Oct. 5/1 The headlines for the story undoubtedly reflect that this was a slow news week.
1979 Punch 15 Aug. 237/2 Whenever it is a slow news period—and traditionally there is none more snail-paced than August—the more racy Sunday newspapers rediscover such hoary old favourites as vice rings.
2014 Edmonton (Alberta) Jrnl. (Nexis) 22 Apr. a14 A 'field guide' to Easter Bunnies in Edmonton mall on the front page of your august Journal? Wow, it must have been a slow news day.
P4.
a. slow boat to China: used to refer to or designate something that takes an excessively long time. Sometimes also used with reference to a person who is extremely slow to act.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > manner of action > slowness of action or operation > [noun] > one who or that which is slow
sloweOE
tarrier1382
sluggard1398
slugc1425
slugger1539
lingerer1579
snaila1593
slowcoach1828
slowpoke1847
go-slow1858
slowie1901
slow boat to China1919
swiftie1945
the world > action or operation > inaction > disinclination to act or listlessness > [noun] > sluggishness or heaviness > person
sluggard1398
slugc1425
dawa1500
belly huddroun?a1513
slowbelly1526
luggard?1528
heavy arse1530
slugger1539
druggard1569
slowback1577
snaila1593
slugplum1593
druggle1611
dawdlea1764
laggard1808
doldrum1812
dawdler1818
slowcoach1828
lag-last1830
slowpoke1847
morepork1874
slob1876
slow boat to China1919
schlump1941
1919 Ocala (Florida) Evening Star 12 Sept. Judging by the way the government has handled the orders taken in Ocala, one would suppose the goods are coming by slow boat from China.
1957 Amer.-Statesman (Austin, Texas) 17 Feb. b2/4 You say there is ample airlift, but what you come up with is a slow-boat-to-China plan, under which troops would be airlifted and then their equipment would come over 30 days later.
1990 L. Persaud Butterfly in Wind 95 George..was fat and jolly and talked, walked and worked in a way that would have made a snail a front runner... We who knew him called him ‘the slow boat to China.’
2011 S. Cone Steal these Ideas! (ed. 2) (e-book ed.) Compared to Google, mail is a slow boat to China times 100.
b. to get (also have, put) a person on a slow boat to China (originally Poker): to put someone in a situation where there is plenty of time to win money from, or gain an advantage over, him or her. Also: to get a troublesome person out of the way.Popularized by the song On a Slow Boat to China written by Frank Loesser (see quot. 1948).
ΚΠ
1947 Washington Post 23 Dec. 8 c/2 I suspect that he's a lousy poker player. I'd like to get him on the proverbial slow boat to China.
1948 F. Loesser On Slow Boat to China (song) in Songbk. (1971) 12 I'd love to get you on a slow boat to China, All to myself alone.
1993 D. Young & R. McLellan High Stakes Poker 109 To take advantage of him, the winning player would like to have him on a slow boat to China in a medium to high stakes game with low antes.
2017 Liverpool Echo (Nexis) 8 May If either of these parties get in power, they will bankrupt us all. If I had my way, I would put.. [their leaders] on a slow boat to China.
P5. to drag one’s slow length along: see length n. 18.

Compounds

C1.
a. Forming adjectives with the sense ‘having or characterized by a slow or sluggish ——’, by combining with a noun + -ed, as in slow-gaited, slow-hearted, slow-minded, slow-motioned, slow-tongued, slow-winged, etc.; also forming derived nouns, as in slow-heartedness, slow-mindedness, etc.See also slow-bellied adj., slow-footed adj., slow-witted adj.
ΚΠ
1530 Bible (Tyndale) Exod. iv. f. viv I am slowe mouthed and slowe tongued.
1581 R. Mulcaster Positions xlii. 260 If the maister be verie sharp witted..and the boy slowheaded.
1592 T. Nashe Pierce Penilesse (Brit. Libr. copy) sig. F Proue it when you will, you slow spirited Saturnists.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Taming of Shrew (1623) ii. i. 207 Oh slow-wing'd Turtle, shal a buzard take thee?
a1680 S. Charnock Several Disc. Existence of God (1682) 394 The frequent rebukes of their slow-heartedness.
1682 London Gaz. No. 1731/4 A thin Melancholy Man,..slow Speeched.
1690 J. Norris Christian Blessedness 28 To convince the slow-hearted and distrustful World.
1695 London Gaz. No. 3136/4 A very strong bay Mare, 8 years old,..slow mettled.
1744 M. Akenside On leaving Holland in Odes 23 The slow-eyed fathers of the land.
1856 ‘M. Twain’ Let. 10 June (1917) I. 33 They are either excessively slow motioned or very lazy.
1863 E. C. Gaskell Sylvia's Lovers I. ix. 187 She..sauntered back behind the patient slow-gaited creatures.
1884 W. C. Smith Kildrostan 91 It is a quakerish thing.., Tame and slow-blooded.
1935 R. Kipling Two Forewords 16 The seller..berated, for their slow-mindedness, men who, but for being too much urged to buy, would have bought.
1951 N. Annan Leslie Stephen x. 285 Progress for him was an incalculable and slow-motioned operation.
1989 California Sept. 56/2 ‘Few cities have places like the Square,’ explains the quick-witted, slow-armed second baseman.
1995 G. Burn Fullalove (2004) vi. 159 Myc Doohan..is..doing slow-brained calculations on a piece of scrap paper.
b. Prefixed to adjectives to form adjectives with the sense ‘slow and——’, as slow-sure, slow-sweet, etc.
ΚΠ
1742 E. Young Complaint: Night the First 18 Beware, Lorenzo! a slow-sudden Death.
1787 R. Burns Poems (new ed.) 201 When on my ear this plaintive strain, Slow-solemn, stole.
1837 T. Carlyle French Revol. II. v. viii. 333 An epigrammatic slow-sure Manuel.
1863 A. B. Grosart Small Sins (ed. 2) 70 If man would but mark the slow-sure advance of the very least sin!
1922 J. Joyce Ulysses ii. xi. [Sirens] 254 Neatly she poured slowsyrupy sloe [printed sole].
2018 Kashmir Images (Nexis) 13 Mar. Good company is okay, but bad company is a slow-sweet poison.
c. Prefixed to nouns to form adjectives with the sense ‘having or characterized by a slow ——’, as in slow-beat, slow-tempo, etc.See also slow-foot adj., slow-speed adj., etc.
ΚΠ
1861 Indianapolis Daily Jrnl. 12 Sept. Whoever wishes slow-beat watches converted into quick, can be accommodated with small expense at Gridley's.
1908 E. Rutherford & H. Geiger in Proc. Royal Soc. A. 81 163 The α-particles, in their passage through matter, liberate a large number of slow-velocity electrons.
1940 C. Day Lewis tr. Virgil Georgics ii. 41 Waggonloads drawn home by the slow-gait oxen.
1962 D. Francis Dead Cert vi. 55 We swayed lazily round the floor to some dreamy slow-tempo music.
1977 J. Wainwright Do Nothin' viii. 125 He can blow a beautiful slow-beat chorus.
2020 National (Abu Dhabi) (Nexis) 29 Aug. Dabab's late-night writing sessions were done along to a slow tempo hip-hop beat he found online.
C2.
slow ball n. Cricket and Baseball a ball that is bowled or pitched at a deceptively low speed, in order to disrupt the batter’s timing.In cricket, rare in British use; the preferred term in all cricket-playing regions is slower ball (slower ball n.). In baseball, now historical and rare. The usual term is now change up (change up n. 2); see also eephus n. 2.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > ball game > baseball > [noun] > pitching > types of pitch
change of pace1650
slow ball1838
passed ball1860
ball1863
rib roaster1864
called ball1865
low ball1866
wild pitch1867
curveball1875
short pitch1877
grass cutter1879
fastball1883
downshoot1886
lob ball1888
pitchout1903
bean ballc1905
spitball1905
screwball1908
spitter1908
sinker ball1910
fallaway1912
meatball1912
fireball1913
roundhouse1913
forkball1923
sinker1926
knuckle ball1927
knuckler1928
gofer1932
slider1936
sailer1937
junk1941
change up1942
eephus1943
junkball1944
split-finger(ed) fastball1980
change1982
society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > ball game > cricket > bowling > [noun] > a ball bowled > types of delivery or ball
full toss1826
long hop1830
twister1832
bail ball1833
bailer1833
grubber1837
slow ball1838
wide1838
ground ball1839
shooter1843
slower ball1846
twiddler1847
creeper1848
lob1851
sneak1851
sneaker1851
slow1854
bumper1855
teaser1856
daisy-cutter1857
popper1857
yorker1861
sharpshooter1863
headball1866
screwball1866
underhand1866
skimmerc1868
grub1870
ramrod1870
raymonder1870
round-armer1871
grass cutter1876
short pitch1877
leg break1878
lob ball1880
off-break1883
donkey-drop1888
tice1888
fast break1889
leg-breaker1892
kicker1894
spinner1895
wrong 'un1897
googly1903
fizzer1904
dolly1906
short ball1911
wrong 'un1911
bosie1912
bouncer1913
flyer1913
percher1913
finger-spinner1920
inswinger1920
outswinger1920
swinger1920
off-spinner1924
away swinger1925
Chinaman1929
overspinner1930
tweaker1938
riser1944
leg-cutter1949
seamer1952
leggy1954
off-cutter1955
squatter1955
flipper1959
lifter1959
cutter1960
beamer1961
loosener1962
doosra1999
1838 Sunday Times 2 Sept. 7/5 By a sort of under hand slow ball.., Mynn's off stump was knocked down.
1959 E. Allen Baseball Play & Strategy i. ii. 18 Often the pitch is a curve or slow ball instead of a ‘fat’ fast ball.
2019 Free Press Jrnl. (India) (Nexis) 15 June Lasith Malinga..is the master of the slow ball, which makes him a go-to wicket-taker.
slow bell n. North American a bell signalling that a ship should proceed slowly; chiefly in prepositional phrases, as in at slow bell, under a slow bell: at a reduced speed, slowly; also figurative.
ΘΚΠ
society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > equipment of vessel > other equipment of vessel > [noun] > bell struck to time watches > bell signalling slow speed
slow bell1853
1853 Wheeling (Va.) Daily Intelligencer 13 Apr. I was on the slow bell at the time—had rang it at the foot of Grand View Island to stop.
1901 Daily Colonist (Victoria, Brit. Columbia) 5 Nov. 3/2 Early in the evening she [sc. S.S. City of Seattle] had run among a number of small icebergs and she was coming down the channel under a slow bell.
1944 Amer. Speech 19 108 Another of the best [phrases], used especially in declining a drink or an extra job of work, is ‘Not me, thanks; I'm taking it on the slow bell.’
1946 Seafarers' Log 19 Apr. 3/4 There will be no slow bell on the organizing drive.
1958 Wall St. Jrnl. 17 Dec. 26/2 We were at slow-bell for much of '58 because of the recession.
2009 Vancouver Province 26 Nov. a21/4 The captain probably tried his best to be in position for when the weather moderated, and just bucked into the seas at a slow bell.
slow bowler n. Cricket a bowler who bowls slow deliveries; (now) spec. a spin bowler; cf. fast bowler n.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > ball game > cricket > cricketer > [noun] > bowler > types of bowler
slow bowler1823
fast bowler1828
bias bowler1854
round-arm1858
demon bowler1861
left-hander1864
chucker1882
lobster1889
slow1895
leg-breaker1904
speed merchant1913
leg-spinner1920
spin bowler1920
off-spinner1924
quickie1934
tweaker1935
swerve-bowler1944
pace bowler1947
seam bowler1948
spinner1951
seamer1952
wrist-spinner1957
outswinger1958
swing bowler1958
quick1960
stock bowler1968
paceman1972
leggy1979
1823 A. Moysey Confederates II. vi. 110 Their best hand..who sends 'em in like a shot, and never any thing but dead lengths, is away; and they have only slow bowlers, I hear, from either wicket.
1897 K. S. Ranjitsinhji Jubilee Bk. Cricket iii. 75 There is a certain amount of ‘flick’ from the fingers, but this is quite different from the twist of the slow bowler.
2007 Wisden Cricketer July (Sri Lanka Suppl.) 12/2 Our one slow bowler develops the yips after three balls and refuses to play again.
slow clap n. an instance of slow, rhythmic clapping, esp. to indicate displeasure or sarcastic acknowledgement.
ΚΠ
1937 Daily Mail 18 Oct. 16/3 But if Arsenal deserved a slow clap, surely Portsmouth earned a cheer for making them look so poor.
2008 R. McAuley Class Captain (2013) vi. 39 Holly and Lily rolled their eyes, and some of the cheekier kids started a slow clap.
slow clap v. intransitive to clap slowly, esp. to indicate displeasure or sarcastic acknowledgement; (also transitive) to show disapproval of or contempt for (a person) in this way.
ΚΠ
1948 Courier & Advertiser (Dundee) 27 July 2/4 A dull sixth session caused the crowd to ‘slow clap’ in unison, and the referee Teddy Waltham called for more action from the boxers.
1960 E. W. Swanton W. Indies Revisited ii. 24 Nurse..actually out-scored Sobers, who found himself humorously slow-clapped.
1979 Guardian 26 Oct. 2/1 Mrs Thatcher was also slow-clapped and heckled..during her speech.
2015 Advertiser (Austral.) (Nexis) 12 Dec. (Lifestyle section) 10 A disillusioned fan stood up and shouted ‘this is shit’ before storming out while others in the theatre slow clapped.
slow-combustion adj. operating by a relatively slow process of combustion; esp. designating a stove or heater which burns solid fuel in an enclosed space without an open flame.
ΚΠ
1853 Belfast News Let. 9 Dec. (advt.) Improvements in heating. Musgrave's patent slow-combustion stove.
1878 Min. Proc. Inst. Civil Engineers 52 115 It will be seen that the slow-combustion engines evaporate more water per lb. of fuel than the others.
1913 Shipbuilding & Shipping Rec. 4 Dec. 737/1 The idea that the Diesel was necessarily a slow-combustion engine was done away with.
1987 Advertiser (Adelaide) (Nexis) 14 Nov. There are large electric and slow-combustion ranges in the kitchen, the latter also serving to boost house heating in winter.
2002 C. Bateson Rain May & Captain Daniel (2003) 12 Mother used to say that nothing cooked bread or soup as well as a slow combustion cooker.
slow contact adj. Photography (now historical) designating photographic paper or other media with a slow reaction to light, designed for contact printing (cf. gaslight n. Compounds 1c).
ΚΠ
1901 Brit. Jrnl. Photogr. 8 Nov. 714/1 (heading) The ‘Wellington’ slow contact paper.
1957 E. S. Bomback Photogr. in Colour x. 107 The use of slow contact printing paper..may result in negative or partially negative images in the print.
2006 R. Suzuki in L. Warren Encyc. 20th-cent. Photogr. 384/2 (Print out paper), which is extremely slow contact printing material, mainly used in the early years of silver gelatin photography.
slow foxtrot n. a foxtrot (foxtrot n. 2) danced at a slow pace; a slower version of the quickstep (quickstep n. 3).In competitive ballroom dancing the slow foxtrot (also called the foxtrot) is one of the five International Standard dances, alongside the tango, waltz, quickstep, and Viennese waltz.
ΚΠ
1918 Music Trades 12 Oct. 31/3 (advt.) My Angel of the Flaming Cross. Slow Fox Trot Ballad Key of F.
1966 ‘M. Halliday’ Wicked as Devil ix. 79 The floor was crowded for a slow foxtrot.
2019 Philippine Star (Nexis) 12 Dec. Mark Jayson Gayon and Mary Joy Reginen, who bagged two gold medals in Standard Waltz and Slow Foxtrot, and a silver medal in Quickstep.
slow-growth adj. (esp. of a business or market) characterized by a slow rate of growth.
ΚΠ
1934 Jrnl. Nutrition 8 151 The rapid growth rats were much heavier than the slow growth rats at the same ages.
1951 Rubber Surv.: Hearings before Subcomm. Rubber, Select Comm. Small Business: Pt. I (U. S. Senate: 82nd Congr., 1st Sess.) 294 It has been a slow-growth business over the first year's history. We started out with about 12 employees and it progressively grew to where, in January of 1951, we had 87 employees.
1965 H. I. Ansoff Corporate Strategy vi. 109 The electronics industry ranges from high growth in technologically sophisticated areas, such as optical electronics, to slow-growth consumer oriented product-markets, such as radio and television.
1970 Globe & Mail (Toronto) 26 Sept. b2/2 Ontario Development Corp. has granted loans totalling more than $1-million to 10 companies planning to set up plants in slow-growth areas of the province.
2002 Business Week 25 Feb. 125/3 47% of its product revenues are still linked to the old, slow-growth mainframe business.
slow handclap n. an instance of slow, rhythmic clapping, esp. to indicate displeasure or sarcastic acknowledgement.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > contempt > disapproval > [noun] > expression of disapproval > by sounds or exclamations
hootinga1225
hissingc1384
fie?1550
acclamation1602
hiss1602
hoot1612
catcall1749
catcallingc1781
scraping1785
sibilation1822
the big bird1825
boo hoo1825
booing1830
Kentish fire1834
boo-hooing1865
boo1884
slow handclap1904
tutting1929
slow handclapping1932
slow clap1937
1904 Seattle Star 6 Apr. 5/3 This slow hand-clap is part of the worship in the temple and is the only tribute that can be paid the emperor [of Japan].
1935 Racine (Wisconsin) Jrnl.-Times 3 Oct. 11/3 The emperor failed to appear as the mobilization decree was read by the chamberlain. It was greeted first by a dead silence, and then by three bursts of slow handclaps from the 10,000.
1959 News Chron. 13 July 4/6 Some cynical dons..were giving the slow hand-clap to the end of the procession.
2017 Daily Mirror (Nexis) 27 Oct. (Sport section) 57 The Arsenal board was booed off and given a patronising slow handclap as Keswick prematurely wrapped up proceedings.
slow handclap v. transitive to indicate one's displeasure at (a person or thing) by clapping slowly; also intransitive.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > contempt > disapproval > disapprove of [verb (transitive)] > express disapproval of > by sound or exclamation
hootc1175
to clap out1550
explose?c1550
explode1563
hiss1598
exsibilate1601
to hum up, down1642
out-hiss1647
chuckle1681
catcall1700
scrape1773
groan1799
to get the (big) bird1825
boo1833
fie-fie1836
goose1838
sibilate1864
cluck1916
bird1927
slow handclap1949
tsk-tsk1966
tut1972
1949 Daily Tel. & Morning Post 1 Aug. (4 A.M. ed.) 3/3 A section of the Swansea crowd saw fit to slow handclap the New Zealanders for what they apparently considered slow methods.
1973 Daily Colonist (Victoria, Brit. Columbia) 25 Jan. 14/1 The crowd..began jeering and slow handclapping the England squad's efforts.
1988 J. Haines Maxwell (U.S. ed.) vi. 215 The Gaitskellites applauded and the Cousinites slow-handclapped as Maxwell left the rostrum.
2003 Independent 15 Mar. 19/6 I watched a group of women slow hand-clapping the Prime Minister.
slow handclapping n. the action of clapping slowly, esp. to indicate displeasure or sarcastic acknowledgement.
ΚΠ
1932 Daily Mail 30 Sept. 17/4 The spectators contented themselves with ironic slow hand-clapping and whistling.
2012 L. Sweet 11 Indispensable Relationships you can't be Without vii. 137 He found his ‘fans’ were greeting him each night with booing, hissing, slow hand-clapping, foot-stomping, and expletives.
slow jam n. (originally in soul music, now chiefly R&B) a slow, smooth, romantic song, sometimes with a strongly sexual feel; (also) music featuring songs of this type.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > music > type of music > vocal music > types of song > [noun] > other types of song
roundelaya1475
black sanctus?1533
pastorella1597
orgial1610
balow1613
comic song1718
hunting-song1727
vaudeville1739
apopemptic1753
melologue1820
Orphic1855
wren song1855
air de cour1878
Kunstlied1880
action song1883
come-all-you1887
marching song1894
party song1911
theme song1929
honky-tonker1950
protest song1953
sing-along1959
slow jam1961
talking blues1969
rap1979
1961 Chicago Defender (National ed.) 20 May 16/8 The ‘Pips’ and Etta James..released a gigging slow jam.
1975 New Pittsburgh Courier 2 Aug. 15/4 Those girls flew up there! [sc. to the stage] Once they were there, the slow jam ‘flowed on’.
2004 T. N. Baker Sheisty 55 Sometimes, we'll just take a late night ride, smoke some trees and listen to slow jams.
2009 T. M. Copes Fatal Secrets xxviii. 146 The DJ played three slow jam classics back to back but the last one put me into total mode.
slow learner n. a person who is slow to learn; esp. a child who does not learn as fast as his or her peers, (sometimes) spec. a child with learning difficulties.
ΘΚΠ
society > education > learning > learner > [noun] > quick or slow
scholar1440
slow learner1837
slow starter1851
1837 Adams Sentinel (Gettysburg, Pa.) 2 Jan. The most valuable men in science are certainly not the smartest—..nine times out of ten the men of most solid acquirement have been but slow learners when young.
1938 High Points Apr. 33/1 The problem of the slow learner continues to grow involved as increased numbers flow into high school.
1977 Wandsworth Borough News 7 Oct. 28/2 (advt.) Tutorials: ‘A’ and ‘O’ level, most subjects; public examinations; slow learners welcome.
1984 K. Hulme Bone People (1985) ii. 59 They shoved him in the special class to begin with, all the slow learners and near nuts.
2016 New Times (Kigali, Rwanda) (Nexis) 1 June In order to grasp new concepts, a slow learner needs more time, more repetition, and often more resources from teachers to be successful.
† slow-legged beetle n. Obsolete a large black flightless beetle, Blaps mortisaga (family Tenebrionidae); a cellar beetle. [After classical Latin tardipēs slow-footed, slow-paced ( < tardi- , combining form (compare -i- connective) of tardus tarde adj. + -pēs -ped comb. form), used in post-classical Latin of various animals (1693 or earlier and compare quot. 1704).]
ΚΠ
1704 J. Petiver Gazophylacii III. 38 Scarabæus impennis tardipes. The slow legg'd Beetle. I meet with these in Cellars and old Houses.
1744 Philos. Trans. 1739–40 (Royal Soc.) 41 441 I..was mentioning..the uncommon and surprising Strength of Life bestowed by Providence on a certain English Insect, called by Petiver, Scarabæus impennis tardipes, the slow-legged Beetle.
1802 C. Stewart Elements Nat. Hist. II. 83 This species wants the wings; it walks slowly, and is therefore called the slow-legged beetle; when taken, it emits a certain colourless, but very fetid liquor.
slow lemur n. now rare an arboreal primate of the family Lorisidae; spec. a slow loris (genus Nycticebus).Cf. slow-paced lemur n. at slow-paced adj. Compounds.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > mammals > order Primates > [noun] > member of suborder Prosimii (lemurs, etc.) > family Lorisidae > genus Nycticebus (slow loris)
slow-paced lemur1790
sloth1791
slow lemur1800
kukang1822
slow loris1824
loris1835
slow-paced loris1842
nycticebine1890
sloth-monkey1891
1800 G. Shaw Gen. Zool. I. i. 81 Of the tailless species the most remarkable is the Slow Lemur.
1943 Amer. Jrnl. Anat. 73 178 Resemblances between the slow lemurs and the sloths are due to convergence as the result of similar postural adaptations.
slow loris n. any of several nocturnal arboreal primates with round heads and large, forward-facing eyes belonging to the genus Nycticebus (family Lorisidae), found in forests in south-east Asia and named for their slow, deliberate manner of climbing.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > mammals > order Primates > [noun] > member of suborder Prosimii (lemurs, etc.) > family Lorisidae > genus Nycticebus (slow loris)
slow-paced lemur1790
sloth1791
slow lemur1800
kukang1822
slow loris1824
loris1835
slow-paced loris1842
nycticebine1890
sloth-monkey1891
1824 E. Griffith et al. Cuvier's Animal Kingdom (1827) I. 229 The Slow Loris, or Sloth of Bengal, (Lemur tardigradus, L. Buff.).
1914 Jrnl. Nat. Hist. Soc. Siam 1 30 The Javan Slow Loris..is generally distributed (though not common), but is rarely seen owing to its nocturnal habits.
1951 Life 8 Oct. 179/1 Visitors to the Small Mammal House of New York City's Bronx Zoo frequently overlook..a whole family of slow lorises thriving in captivity.
2019 Belfast Tel. Online (Nexis) 12 Mar. Because relatively little research has been done into slow loris populations, it is not known exactly how rare the albino is.
slow neutron n. Nuclear Physics a neutron with relatively little kinetic energy, esp. as a result of being slowed down by a moderator; a thermal neutron.Cf. sense 21.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > physics > atomic nucleus > nuclear fission > nuclear reactor > [noun] > thermal or slow reactor > neutron with low energy
slow neutron1932
1932 Nature 9 July 57/2 (heading) Concentration of slow neutrons in the atmosphere.
1938 R. W. Lawson tr. G. von Hevesy & F. A. Paneth Man. Radioactivity (ed. 2) x. 112 These slow neutrons are produced by allowing fast neutrons, such as those emitted by a radon-beryllium source, to pass through water, paraffin wax, or other substances containing hydrogen.
1949 Atomics Sept. 45/2 The so-called ‘slow neutron reactor’. These reactors take advantage of the fact that neutrons produce fission in uranium more easily as they go slower.
2011 M. Irvine Nucl. Power: Very Short Introd. ii. 28 Natural uranium..will not go critical at any mass without a moderator to increase the number of slow neutrons which are the dominant fission triggers.
slow pass n. Bridge a pass (pass n.4 5) made by a player after a long period of thought.Slow passes are considered unethical as, by appearing indecisive about whether to bid or not, a player can convey information about the strength of his or her hand.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > entertainment > pastimes > game > card game > bridge > [noun] > actions or tactics > call > pass
pass1923
slow pass1931
penalty pass1959
1931 Oakland (Calif.) Tribune 20 Dec. 6 s/3 Among the offenses cited is the ‘slow pass’.
1973 Times 2 June 10/6 It was agreed when North South protested the score that East's pass over Three Spades was a ‘slow pass’.
2002 Sydney Morning Herald (Nexis) 21 Nov. 41 A smooth pass would allow East to bid 5S but a slow pass or a slow double would effectively bar East.
slow puncture n. Chiefly British, Irish English, and South African a puncture from which the air escapes gradually and often imperceptibly; (also figurative) something which causes a gradual decline or loss of momentum.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > relative position > condition of being open or not closed > an opening or aperture > [noun] > a hole bored, pierced, or perforated > accidental hole allowing escape of air
puncture1893
slow puncture1896
1896 Evening Star (Washington, D.C.) 1 Oct. 3/2 The pieces of glass have been driven over so much territory and ground so fine that slow punctures are caused.
1936 Times 11 June 14/3 In the beginning this comedy, fully inflated, bounces to the joy of all beholders, and the ‘slow’ puncture is not even suspected.
1958 E. Newby Short Walk in Hindu Kush xviii. 217 Our airbeds had slow punctures and the ground was hard.
1983 Financial Times 21 Mar. 14/3 Japan's world-dominating motorcycle industry has developed a slow puncture.
2019 Independent (Nexis) 4 Aug. There is no fuel in the car, and there is a slow puncture in at least three of the tyres.
slow reactor n. Nuclear Physics a nuclear reactor in which fission is produced primarily by moderated neutrons; a thermal reactor.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > physics > atomic nucleus > nuclear fission > nuclear reactor > [noun] > thermal or slow reactor
slow reactor1947
thermal reactor1949
1947 Oil Engine & Gas Turbine July 73/1 Nuclear reactors are of two general types, known as fast and slow reactors.
1973 Daily Tel. 12 Oct. 8/5 Fast reactors, cooled by sodium instead of carbon dioxide, as in slow reactors now used, can provide more heat more rapidly.
2009 WA Business News (Austral.) (Nexis) 14 May A move towards ‘fast’ reactor technology would enable the use of 97 per cent of the available energy content of nuclear fuel, producing lower volumes of high level spent fuel than present ‘slow’ reactors, which only recover 5 per cent of available energy content from their fuel.
slow scan n. a system by which television or video images are scanned at a much slower rate than the standard speed, typically so that the resulting signal has a much smaller bandwidth and can be transmitted more easily or cheaply; frequently as a modifier.
ΚΠ
1955 Sun (Baltimore) 7 Dec. (B ed.) 3/4 The so-called slow-scan system paints a picture every two seconds and requires only 8,000 cycles.
1955 Sun (Baltimore) 7 Dec. (B ed.) 3/5 Slow scan cannot handle objects in motion.
1970 N. Armstrong et al. First on Moon v. 110 TV was tried on Gordon Cooper's Mercury flight, using a slow-scan black and white camera.
1990 M. M. Mirabito & B. Morgenstern New Communications Technol. viii. 148/2 The second major category of videoconferencing is slow-scan, also known as freeze-frame videoconferencing.
2000 CCTV Solutions June 42/2 It can take as long as 20 seconds for a slow-scan transmitted frame to appear on a monitor for viewing.
slow starter n. a person who or thing which gets off to a slow start.Originally in sporting contexts.
ΘΚΠ
society > education > learning > learner > [noun] > quick or slow
scholar1440
slow learner1837
slow starter1851
1851 Era 5 Jan. 3/2 The celebrated Watling never did run 100 yards in nine seconds, as he was a slow starter.
1891 Cambr. Independent Press 30 May 6/6 The mangel is a slow starter. Swedes begin to peep already.
1975 Times 26 Apr. 7/4 I was 24 and I'd run away from home... I was kind of a slow starter.
1994 N.Y. Times 24 July iii. 7/2 Microsoft's own Unix product, Windows NT, has been a slow starter.
slow-steam v. intransitive (of a ship or other seagoing vessel) to travel at a deliberately slower speed than normal or standard; (also occasionally transitive) to cause (a ship) to travel at a deliberately slow speed.
ΚΠ
1862 A. H. Foote Rep. to U.S. Navy Dept. in N.-Y. Times 13 Feb. 1/4 As we approached the fort, slow steaming till we reached within 600 hundred yards of the rebel batteries, the fire both from the gunboats and the fort increased in rapidity and accuracy of range.
1975 Petroleum Economist Sept. 356/3 22 per cent of the active fleet..was estimated to be slow-steaming in July.
2009 Jrnl. Commerce (Nexis) 9 Feb. 11 The route around the Cape of Good Hope, on which Maersk slow-steams its ships, is about 4,000 miles longer.
slow steaming (a) n. the progress of ships or other seagoing vessels at a slow speed, esp. as a deliberate policy (in modern commerce, typically 18–20 knots or slower, rather than 22–25 knots); (b) adj. (of a ship or other seagoing vessel) travelling slowly, esp. at a deliberately slow speed.
ΚΠ
1855 Standard 23 Apr. Including this digression from the straight line and the slow steaming at starting, their Imperial Majesties were landed on their own shores within one hour and fifty minutes.
1861 G. P. Bidder National Defences 36 Heavily-armed, but slow-steaming ships, who could beat them off, but were incapable of following them.
1975 Petroleum Economist Sept. 341/2 Due to slow-steaming, fuel consumption..fell.
2010 Observer 25 July 18/5 Slow steaming has been the most important factor in reducing our CO2 emissions in recent years.
2012 A. McDonald in A. Chircop et al. Regulation Internat. Shipping 473 In June 1943, I joined my first ship, a coal-burning, slow-steaming general cargo ship of 8,000 dwt.
slow train n. a train which stops at all or many of the minor stations along its route; a local train.Cf. fast train n.
ΘΚΠ
society > travel > rail travel > rolling stock > [noun] > train > passenger train > stopping at some or all stations
slow train1838
omnibus train1846
way train1846
stopping train1854
stopper1969
1838 Manch. Guardian 19 Sept. The slow train, having to make sundry stoppages, could not be passed.
1955 C. S. Lewis Let. 5 Dec. (1975) 265 I find myself perfectly content in a slow train that crawls through green fields stopping at every station.
2015 D. Styles Bomb Girls xxii. 244 By three o'clock they were on a slow train to Preston, changing at Lancaster and Kendal and finally getting into Keswick around six o'clock.
slow-twitch adj. Physiology designating a (type of) muscle or muscle fibre that contracts and relaxes slowly, which typically is involved in slow or sustained movements and does not become fatigued easily.Contrasted with fast-twitch adj. at fast adj. Compounds 2.
ΚΠ
1958 Ann. Rev. Physiol. 20 88 The explanation of the difference in kinetics between slow and fast twitch fibers would be simple if the contractile proteins were different.
1994 Runner's World Feb. 34/1 Muscle fibers are divided into two main categories, Type I and Type II—or, more commonly, slow-twitch and fast-twitch muscles.
2014 Wired May 69/1 Thoroughbreds have nearly twice as many slow-twitch fibers as sprinty quarter horses.
slow virus n. Medicine any virus or virus-like agent that causes a slow virus disease (see sense 11b); (in later use) esp. a lentivirus; also as a modifier.
ΚΠ
1965 D. C. Gajdusek et al. Slow, Latent, & Temperate Virus Infections (U.S. Dept. Health: National Inst. Neurol. Dis. & Blindness) 357/1 The importance of this type of infectious entity and the group of slow viruses is firmly established.
1977 Sci. Amer. May 140/2 A dozen fatal diseases of the human central nervous system stand suspect of slow-virus origin.
2006 M. B. Gardner in H. Friedman et al. In vivo Models HIV Dis. & Control i. 8 Visna virus was the prototype ‘slow virus’, responsible in the 1950s for wiping out all of the sheep in Iceland.
slow wheel n. a type of potter's wheel turned at a slow speed.Recorded earliest as a modifier.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > equipment > pottery manufacturing equipment > [noun] > potter's lathe > horizontal wheel of
wheela1382
potter's wheel1609
whirling-table1764
throwing table1855
slow wheel1925
1925 Man 25 3 The ware is usually handmade, but shows signs of the incipient wheel—the ‘slow-wheel’ method.
1971 Canad. Antiques Collector Apr. 16/1 Most frequently Ipswich ware is formed on a ‘slow wheel’ which is in principle a freely-revolving turntable. Both pot and wheel were revolved by hand.
2013 J. J. Cunningham in Human Exped. v. 66 Somono potters, for example, use a slow-wheel while Fulani potters prefer a paddle-and-anvil technique, each of which produces distinctive types of pottery.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2021; most recently modified version published online June 2022).

slowv.

Brit. /sləʊ/, U.S. /sloʊ/
Forms: Old English slawian, early Middle English slawe, Middle English slouwe, Middle English– slow, 1500s slowe.
Origin: A word inherited from Germanic. Probably also partly formed within English, by conversion. Etymon: slow adj.
Etymology: Cognate with or formed similarly to Old High German slēwōn , slēwēn to slacken, to grow limp, to wither away (Middle High German slēwe to become blunt, weak, or tired), Old Icelandic sljóva to make blunt, slævask to become blunt, Swedish slöa to make blunt or sluggish, to become blunt or weak, Danish sløve to become weak < the Germanic base of slow adj. In later use probably re-formed directly < slow adj.; rare before the 16th cent.In Old English a weak verb of Class II. A weak verb of Class I derived from the same verbal base (with i-mutation of the stem vowel caused by the verb-forming suffix) is also attested but only in prefixed forms; compare aslāwian (Class II) to become sluggish, to become neglectful, to become dull, to become dim, beside rare aslǣwan (Class I) to become blunt (compare a- prefix1), and forslāwian (Class II) beside forslǣwan (Class I), both in the senses ‘to be slow about, to neglect, to put off’ (see forslow v.).
†1.
a. intransitive. To be slow to do something. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > manner of action > slowness of action or operation > be or become slow [verb (intransitive)] > be dilatory
slowOE
tarrya1375
linger1548
procrastinate1548
slackc1560
forslow1571
to hang back1581
to hang an (also the) arse1596
to hang fire1782
to be slow off the mark1972
OE St. Mary of Egypt (Julius) (2002) 74 Hwæs wilnast þu fram me to hæbbenne.., þæt þu ne slawedest swa micel geswinc to gefremmanne for minum þingum?
a1225 (?c1175) Poema Morale (Lamb.) l. 37 in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 161 Ne scal na mon don afirst ne slawen wel to done.
b. transitive. To be slow in carrying out (something); to neglect (one's business or duties). Cf. forslow v. 1. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > manner of action > slowness of action or operation > be slow in performing [verb (transitive)]
slowa1425
the world > time > a suitable time or opportunity > untimeliness > [verb (transitive)] > be late or slow to do something
slowa1425
a1425 Serm. (Rawl.) in G. Cigman Lollard Serm. (1989) 180 Suche ben like to false seruantis þat wolen take her ful hire, but to slow her maystris seruice haue þei no conscience, for þei seyen þei ben vnable to suche a werke.
1587 J. Hooker Chron. Ireland 142/2 in Holinshed's Chron. (new ed.) II The lord deputie, not slacking nor slowing his businesse, followed out of hand the foresaid rebels.
a1623 W. Pemble Fiue Godly & Profitable Serm. (1628) iv. 65 Thou hast slowed Gods Seruice to follow thy owne imployments.
†2. transitive. To waste (time). Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > time > spending time > spend time or allow time to pass [verb (transitive)] > waste time
leese?c1225
losea1340
defer1382
wastea1400
slip1435
consumea1500
superexpend1513
slow?1522
sloth1523
to fode forth1525
slack1548
dree1584
sleuth1584
confound1598
spenda1604
to fret out1608
to spin out1608
misplace1609
spend1614
tavern1628
devast1632
to drill away, on, outa1656
dulla1682
to dally away1685
squander1693
to linger awaya1704
dangle1727
dawdle1768
slim1812
diddle1826
to run out the clock1957
?1522 W. Fitzwilliam in H. Ellis Orig. Lett. Eng. Hist. (1827) 2nd Ser. I. 223 Assoone as God shall sende weder any thing mete for men to goo to the see, I shall slowe no tyme.
a1638 J. Mede Wks. (1672) iii. viii. 595 He slowed no time: For as soon as the Empire began to crack he began to advance.
3.
a. transitive. To cause (movement or action) to become slower; to decrease (the rate or pace of something).
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > rate of motion > move at specific rate [verb (transitive)] > reduce (speed) > cause to reduce speed
check1393
slow1557
lag1570
slack1577
slacken1580
slug1605
trasha1616
overslow1619
beslowa1644
steady1812
to slow up1868
decelerate1899
1557 Bible (Whittingham) Luke xii. 45 My master sloweth his commyng.
1578 J. Banister Hist. Man v. f. 67 The meate is left destitute of concoction, and distribution therof in the body slowed.
1613 J. Florio tr. M. de Montaigne Ess. (rev. ed.) ii. iii. 198 The vapor of the wine having possessed their veines, and slowed the effect and operation of the poyson.
1624 T. Heywood Γυναικεῖον ii. 117 Their speed may bee slackned though not stay'd, and their pace slowed though not quite stopt.
1866 Duke of Argyll Reign of Law iii. 146 A bird can, of course, allow itself to fall backwards by merely slowing the action of its wings.
1875 H. C. Wood Treat. Therapeutics (1879) 138 Digitalis is capable of slowing the beat of the isolated heart of the frog.
1908 Camera July 277/2 The shellac, or grease, or sugar are all intended to slow the rate of combustion.
1989 B. Burke in D. Helwig & M. Helwig Coming Attractions 32 Low branches and underbrush slow your progress.
1990 Cook's May 70/3 ‘Brew control’..speeds or slows the passage of water through the grounds in order to make stronger or weaker coffee.
2020 Daily Tel. (Nexis) 25 Apr. 21 All he could offer was an oestrogen-suppressant drug that would slow the growth of the tumours and buy some time.
b. transitive. To decrease the speed or rate of (something); to cause (something) to move or operate more slowly.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > manner of action > slowness of action or operation > be slow in performing [verb (transitive)] > make slower
slow1586
to slow up1868
1586 T. Bright Treat. Melancholie xxv. 151 The laughter is deliuered by interrupted expiration: by reason the midriffe in his contraction is not suffered quietly to finish it, but is by the harts trouble restrained & slowed in his fall.
1609 S. Lennard Exhortatory Instr. Speedy Resol. of Repentance vi. vii. 517 Because it [sc. the soul] is subtile, by the resistance of the medium it is no way slowed.
1828 J. Ross Treat. Navigation by Steam iii. 94 When she had arrived at the point h..which she did in 17 seconds, the engine was slowed.
1972 D. Wolf Foul! xxv. 365 Egan was slowed by a groin pull. Without him, the Lakers' offense was disjointed.
2015 BBC Focus Nov. 59/1 The ‘diving response’ which slows the heart, and diverts blood to the heart, brain and working muscles.
c. transitive. To cause (a vessel, vehicle, or train) gradually to slacken in speed; to reduce the speed of (a vessel, vehicle, or train).
ΘΚΠ
society > travel > transport > transport or conveyance in a vehicle > driving or operating a vehicle > drive a vehicle [verb (transitive)] > cause to slow down
slow1845
slower1849
to slow up1868
1845 Documents Senate State N.-Y.: 68th Sess. III. No. 102. 4 The committee see no reason for slowing the boat on the Athens channel, as this reach is open, wide, free and safe.
1889 Boy's Own Paper 16 Nov. 103/1 The ship was now slowed, for we could not cross the bar that night.
1899 Expositor Jan. 55 We do not want men..to..slow the advancing chariot by hanging on listlessly behind.
1939 West Australian (Perth) 14 Jan. 13/7 The driver, sensing danger, had slowed the train.
2014 Sunday Times (Nexis) 14 Dec. To slow down on slippery surfaces, go down through the gears, slowing the car with the engine rather than via the brakes.
4.
a. intransitive. Of a moving person, animal, vehicle, etc.: to slacken in speed; to move or go more slowly.
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > rate of motion > move at specific rate [verb (intransitive)] > decrease speed
slack1580
slow1594
slacken1734
to flag rein1848
steady1850
to slow down1857
to slow up1861
decelerate1928
downshift1974
1594 R. Carew tr. T. Tasso Godfrey of Bulloigne ii. 58 To the King she came, Nor for he angry seemes, one step she slowes.
a1657 G. Daniel Idyllia in Poems (1878) IV. v. 233 The world Slow'th, Readie to take the Fillup of a Hand Must cure her Dropsie.
1870 Daily News 28 Dec. They came on very steadily for about a quarter of a mile, then they slowed, and finally halted.
1894 Law Times Rep. 71 102/2 The Diana also..slowed, so as to permit the tug to pass her.
1936 Street & Smith's Western Story Mag. 14 Mar. 45/2 The main herd slowed to a joggy trot.
1980 B. MacLaverty Lamb (1981) xvii. 146 He ran up the sand dunes, slowing half way up as the sand silted knee-deep.
2013 T. Thorn Bedsit Disco Queen 339 A huge, gleaming Range Rover with black-tinted windows slowed as it neared us and then pulled over to the side of the road.
b. intransitive. To become less active, lively, or intense; (of movement, rate, etc.) to become slower.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > manner of action > lack of violence, severity, or intensity > become less violent or severe [verb (intransitive)] > lose vigour or intensity
swindOE
wane1297
forslacka1300
keelc1325
deadc1384
abatea1387
flag1639
to go off1642
subsidea1645
slacken1651
flat1654
lower1699
relax1701
deaden1723
entame1768
sober1825
lighten1827
sletch1847
slow1849
languish1855
bate1860
to slow up1861
to slow down1879
1849 A. J. Symington Harebell Chimes 218 The movement slows again, shaping itself In plaintive sweetness to a melody By Handel.
1891 S. Mostyn Curatica 161 The oscillation quickened—to slow again, however.
1955 Times 9 May 3/3 The action therefore slows almost to a standstill in the middle reaches of the play.
2020 New Yorker 4 May 19/2 Hospital administrators have stopped daily crisis meetings, because the rate of incoming patients has slowed.
c. intransitive. Of a train or its passengers: to move with slackening speed into a station.
ΘΚΠ
society > travel > rail travel > [verb (intransitive)] > move with slackening speed
slow1867
1867 Caledonian Mercury 15 Jan. The Caledonian passenger train..reached Glasgow at 11.25, and was slowing into the station.
1881 Times 28 Feb. 11/4 A Watford up train..was slowing into Dalston, where it was to stop.
1990 P. Conrad Where I fell to Earth (U.S. ed.) v. 114 All was cordiality until we slowed into Paddington three minutes later.
2020 Guardian (Nexis) 12 Jan. Slowing into the station, the train creaked and came to a halt.
†5. intransitive. To be delayed or deferred. Obsolete. rare.
ΘΚΠ
the world > time > a suitable time or opportunity > untimeliness > delay or postponement > delay [verb (intransitive)] > be delayed
hang1494
stick?a1518
supersede1569
to cool one's heels (also feet, hooves)1576
slow1601
stay1642
retard1646
to come by the lame post1658
to cool one's toes1665
1601 R. Dolman tr. P. de la Primaudaye French Acad. III. 225 The wicked..may thinke that their condemnation sloweth.

Phrases

U.S. colloquial (originally and chiefly in African-American usage). to slow a person's (also one's) roll: to cause someone to slow down, to slow down. Chiefly imperative in slow your roll, as an exhortation to be calm, or to stop exasperating or opposing someone.The exact sense in quot. 1959 is unclear.
ΚΠ
1959 C. Twitty in Catal. Copyright Entries: Pt. 3 (Libr. of Congr. Copyright Office) (1960) 13 485/3 (title of song) Slow your roll.]
1977 Charlotte (N. Carolina) Observer 1 May 5 d/4 He discovered his lifestyle was going up, but his life was going down. ‘I had to slow my roll,’ he said.
1990 ‘Fingerprints’ Negro wit' an Ego (transcribed from song, perf. ‘Salt-N-Pepa’) Slow your roll, you don't even know me.
2005 Savoy (N.Y.) June Tunie has never let..racial, gender or age discrimination (she's 45 years old) dim her lights or slow her roll.
2013 R. Alers Secret Vows xx. 297 Slow your roll, mister. Either you address my employees with respect or I'm going to ask you to leave.

Phrasal verbs

With adverbs in specialized senses. to slow down
Originally U.S.
1. transitive. To cause (something) to move or operate more slowly; to decrease (the speed or rate) of something; to make slower.Recorded earliest in nautical contexts.
ΚΠ
1855 Wayne County Herald (Honesdale, Pa.) 25 Jan. The steamer started off like a free courser, but was soon slowed down to wait for her consort.
1891 W. C. Russell Marriage at Sea II. xiv. 158 The engines were ‘slowed down’, as I believe the term is, and a minute later the revolutions of the propeller ceased.
1916 B. Cable Action Replay 132 The guns slowed down their rate of fire.
1978 Daily Tel. 26 July 3/2 The coach seemed to be ‘over-revving’, as though the driver was not using the brakes to slow it down.
1993 D. Irvin Behind Bench iii. 49 I was smart enough to realize you had to slow the game down when you're leading and there's no stop-time.
2008 Observer 17 Feb. 24/5 Immunotherapy could slow down, and possibly prevent, the early changes that lead to memory loss and learning problems.
2.
a. intransitive. Of a moving person, animal, vehicle, etc.: to slacken in speed; to move or go more slowly.
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > rate of motion > move at specific rate [verb (intransitive)] > decrease speed
slack1580
slow1594
slacken1734
to flag rein1848
steady1850
to slow down1857
to slow up1861
decelerate1928
downshift1974
1857 N.Y. Herald 12 Oct. (Morning ed.) 2/2 She slowed down until she was right abeam with our ship.
1891 Cornhill Mag. Jan. 15 He slowed down into a shambling walk.
1939 W. Saroyan Peace, it's Wonderful 55 The old Ford rattled down Ventura Avenue and then slowed down.
1997 Gallop! Jan. 38/1 The sight of water will often make a horse slow down to take stock.
2016 Sun (Nexis) 15 Jan. 9 The Road Safety Authority is warning all motorists to slow down as the cold snap continues.
b. intransitive. To operate at a slower pace; to become less active, lively, or intense.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > manner of action > lack of violence, severity, or intensity > become less violent or severe [verb (intransitive)] > lose vigour or intensity
swindOE
wane1297
forslacka1300
keelc1325
deadc1384
abatea1387
flag1639
to go off1642
subsidea1645
slacken1651
flat1654
lower1699
relax1701
deaden1723
entame1768
sober1825
lighten1827
sletch1847
slow1849
languish1855
bate1860
to slow up1861
to slow down1879
1879 Lumberman's Gaz. 23 Aug. The chances were that the boom company would be obliged to slow down for a few days.
1904 Field 6 Feb. 202/3 The game slowed down a little after Hobbins had scored once more.
1991 Income Units: Manager's Rep. (Save & Prosper Securities Ltd.) 12 Mar. 3 Many economic statistics demonstrated that the UK economy was slowing down.
2020 Times of India (Nexis) 16 Apr. After the corona crisis is over, we must learn to slow down a bit.
 to slow up
Originally U.S.
1. intransitive. To decrease in speed; to become less active, lively, or intense; to become slower.
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > rate of motion > move at specific rate [verb (intransitive)] > decrease speed
slack1580
slow1594
slacken1734
to flag rein1848
steady1850
to slow down1857
to slow up1861
decelerate1928
downshift1974
the world > action or operation > manner of action > lack of violence, severity, or intensity > become less violent or severe [verb (intransitive)] > lose vigour or intensity
swindOE
wane1297
forslacka1300
keelc1325
deadc1384
abatea1387
flag1639
to go off1642
subsidea1645
slacken1651
flat1654
lower1699
relax1701
deaden1723
entame1768
sober1825
lighten1827
sletch1847
slow1849
languish1855
bate1860
to slow up1861
to slow down1879
1861 Monmouth Herald & Inquirer (Freehold, New Jersey) 15 Aug. The engineer slowed up and the cars came to a stand still directly abreast of the amateur flagman.
1885 W. D. Howells Rise Silas Lapham ii. 46 He brought the mare down to a walk, and then slowed up almost to a stop.
1959 I. Gershwin Lyrics on Several Occasions 55 The lights dimmed down, the music slowed up.
1998 D. Coupland Girlfriend in Coma xxiii. 188 Nobody seems to be slowing up, even for a juicy rubberneck.
2001 Today's Pilot Feb. 73 Crimson Skies is a fairly power-hungry game, and can slow up on older machines when the action gets thick.
2013 Wall St. Jrnl. 14 Dec. c12/3 His sexual appetite never slowed up.
2. transitive. To cause (something) to move or operate more slowly; to decrease (the speed or rate) of something; to make slower.
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > rate of motion > move at specific rate [verb (transitive)] > reduce (speed) > cause to reduce speed
check1393
slow1557
lag1570
slack1577
slacken1580
slug1605
trasha1616
overslow1619
beslowa1644
steady1812
to slow up1868
decelerate1899
the world > action or operation > manner of action > slowness of action or operation > be slow in performing [verb (transitive)] > make slower
slow1586
to slow up1868
society > travel > transport > transport or conveyance in a vehicle > driving or operating a vehicle > drive a vehicle [verb (transitive)] > cause to slow down
slow1845
slower1849
to slow up1868
1868 Star of Valley (Newville, Pa.) 1 Feb. Being discovered by the engineer, the train was slowed up, and he [sc. the man riding on the cow-catcher] ordered to remove himself.
1879 Specif. & Drawings of Patents (U.S. Patent Office) 8 July 396/2 When it is desired to slow up the engine the valve n is closed to the necessary extent.
1932 Z. Fitzgerald Save Me Waltz in Coll. Writings (1991) 121 Her exhaustion slowed up her pulses to the tempo of her childhood.
1933 S. M. Stinchfield Speech Disorders i. 10 The child may be deaf, or some childhood illness may have slowed up his rate of development.
1998 Town & Country Planning 67 95/4 They..could use their fantastically wide brief to interfere with (or block or slow up) anything that stood in their way.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2021; most recently modified version published online March 2022).

slowadv.

Brit. /sləʊ/, U.S. /sloʊ/
Forms: see slow adj.
Origin: Formed within English, by conversion. Etymon: slow adj.
Etymology: < slow adj.
In a slow manner; at a slow pace or speed; slowly.Slow and slowly are both used as adverbs corresponding to the adjective slow, with slow being particularly common with participles, as in slow-cooked, slow-growing, slow-moving, etc. (see Compounds 1). When slow is used in expressions such as to drive slow and to walk slow it is usually regional or nonstandard; by contrast, the adverb fastly meaning ‘quickly, rapidly’ is rare (see fastly adv. 4), with fast being the standard adverb in all contexts (see fast adv. 7).
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > rate of motion > slowness > [adverb]
slowlyc1384
slowa1398
tortoise-like1645
lently1655
snail-like1825
loiteringly1836
dreichly1844
oozily1871
leadenly1879
snailishly1889
glacially1975
the world > action or operation > manner of action > slowness of action or operation > [adverb]
lateeOE
latelyOE
heavilyc1000
hoolya1340
slowlyc1384
slowa1398
sluggedlyc1450
tarryingly1530
loiteringly1547
sluggishly1565
languishingly1579
limpingly1579
lingeringly1589
tarde1598
unnimbly1607
longsomelyc1610
tardilya1616
languidly1655
heavy1701
slack1854
snailishly1889
tharfly1894
pole pole1902
weedy-slow1921
a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add. 27944) (1975) II. xviii. cvii. 1256 Some men trowen..þat þe schip goþ þe slowere if he bere þe right foot of a snayle.
c1400 (?c1380) Patience l. 466 (MED) Quen hit neȝed to naȝt, nappe hym bihoued; He slydez on a sloumbe-slep, sloghe vnder leues.
1513 G. Douglas tr. Virgil Æneid viii. vii. 105 The mychty God of fyr..als tyte, And no slawer,..Furth of his bed startis.
1600 W. Shakespeare Midsummer Night's Dream i. i. 3 But oh, me thinks, how slow This old Moone waues.
1680 J. Moxon Mech. Exercises I. xii. 209 In large and heavy Work the Tread comes slow and heavily down.
1733 W. Ellis Chiltern & Vale Farming 109 It grew so slow, as provoked him to take it up.
1772 W. Jones Poems 122 Slow he approach'd; then wav'd his awful hand.
1847 W. M. Thackeray Vanity Fair (1848) viii. 66 We drove very slow for the last two stages on the road.
1858 Edinb. Rev. July 207 The narrative moves slow.
1953 Downbeat 29 July 19/5 Mexican Joe started slow, but after a few weeks it skyrocketed to the top position in the C[ountry] & W[estern] field.
1987 A. Nickon & E. F. Silversmith Org. Chem.: Name Game v. 66 [It] is the most polar of the four and travels slowest on chromatography.
2003 Vibe Feb. 106/2 His pants were hangin' down, and he walked slow.

Phrases

P1. to go slow: to proceed cautiously or gradually; to act without haste or rashness. Also (chiefly with on or with): to use with moderation.In quot. 1664 as part of an extended metaphor relating to sailing.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > manner of action > slowness of action or operation > [phrase] > without haste
in (good) leisurec1315
by leisurec1386
soft and fairc1391
to go slow1664
in a slow hurry1849
the world > action or operation > manner of action > slowness of action or operation > [phrase] > gradually or in stages
footmealeOE
(a, by) lite and litec1290
a little and a littlea1375
little and littlea1387
(by) some and some1398
by little and by littlea1425
little by little?a1425
littly?a1425
inchmeal1530
by small and small1558
by (a) little1577
gradatim1583
by lithe and lithe1592
by inchesa1616
inch by incha1616
to go slow1664
the world > action or operation > behaviour > good behaviour > restrained or moderate behaviour > behave with moderation or restraint [verb (intransitive)]
to keep (also observe) measure(s) (also a measure)a1500
to use a mean1607
go-easy1860
to pull one's punches1931
to go slow1962
1664 Advice of Father; or, Counsel to Child i. xliv. 23 Better to go slow, than to over-set.
1844 Cleveland (Ohio) Herald 12 Dec. In matters of the affections, as well as in almost every thing else, it is best to go slow; there may be pearls in the way, and we might crush them unobserved in a too hasty march.
1904 Amer. Jrnl. Theol. 8 399 This lesson of going slow in reforms, and of taking constant account of conditions as well as of ultimate ideals, is wisely and effectively enforced.
1962 A. La Guma Walk in Night (1968) 52 He reached for his bottle of cheap wine and poured a drink. His hands shook a little. ‘You better go slow on that,’ the girl..said.
2015 News Shopper (Nexis) 30 Apr. Go Slow! Don't sit down on a Saturday morning planning to revise the whole of Maths in one go.
P2. to take it slow.
a. Originally U.S. To proceed cautiously or gradually; to act without haste or rashness; = to go slow at Phrases 1.With quot. 1783 cf. to take it slow and easy at Phrases 2b.
ΚΠ
1783 A. Macaulay Let. 26 Feb. in William & Mary Coll. Q. Hist. Mag. (1903) 11 180 We are thus far safe on our Journey..which, when the badness of the roads is considered, is more than could have been expected; to be sure we sometimes stuck fast. However, we rub'd throw, & we took it slow & easy.
1859 J. Bentwright Amer. Horse Tamer & Farrier 12 Let him start the buggy empty, and pull that at first in that way; then get in, and let him take it slow, and he will not be near so apt to scare.
1941 J. Stuart Men of Mountains 87 No wonder he takes it slow. He could not take it faster.
1998 P. Grace Baby No-eyes (1999) xx. 165 A few hours' drive ahead of him on a wet road. Take it slow and hope he wouldn't be picked up for the state of his tyres.
2014 M. Blackstone Sorry you're Lost 65 At first he takes it slow, nibbling on the outside of the legs and thighs, but then he loses control.
b. colloquial (originally U.S.). To rest or relax; to enjoy a period of inactivity or leisure; to desist from unnecessary exertion. Chiefly in to take it slow and easy. Sometimes as a general expression of good wishes on parting. Cf. to take it easy at easy adv. 4a.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > [verb (intransitive)] > relax
relax1652
to take it slow and easy1819
to let down1964
1819 B. F. Butler Let. 24 Aug. in W. L. Mackenzie Lives Butler & Hoyt (1845) iv. 21 I shall take it slow and easy for the future, without laboring as I have done for the two months past.
1961 B. Bernstein Grove vii. 126 Eddie proffered his long thin hand. I shook it and said, ‘I'll see you.’ ‘Take it slow, man,’ Eddie said.
1986 J. Batten Judges (1987) iv. 189 Taking it slow and easy isn't his idea of a good time.
2020 @ifyouonlyknewlz 24 Aug. in twitter.com accessed 20 Nov. 2020 It felt so good to just sleep in today and take it slow.

Compounds

C1.
a. With present participles forming adjectives, as slow-acting, slow-growing, slow-running, slow-selling, slow-working, etc.Compounds of slow formed in this way are very common: see note at main sense.See also slow-going adj., slow-moving adj., slow-reacting adj., etc.
ΚΠ
1582 R. Robinson tr. V. Strigel Pt. Harmony King Dauids Harp xix. 214 Where the tree seldome is refresht with summer shadow in slowe growing woods.
1632 J. Milton Epit. On Shakespear in W. Shakespeare Comedies, Hist. & Trag. (ed. 2) sig. A5 Whil'st to th' shame of slow-endevouring Art Thy easie numbers flow.
1656 T. Blount Glossographia Boötes, a slow working Star in the North Pole, near to Charls wain, which it follows.
1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Georgics iii, in tr. Virgil Wks. 121 The slow creeping Evil eats his way. View more context for this quotation
1779 J. Warner in J. H. Jesse G. Selwyn & his Contemp. (1844) IV. 301 I shall..come in a steel-springed slow-driving hack on Friday.
1785 W. Cowper Task i. 558 I see a column of slow-rising smoke O'ertop the lofty wood.
1826 Lancet 10 June 331/2 The intestines, like other parts, are liable to a slow-acting, or chronic kind of inflammation.
1833 J. Rennie Alphabet Sci. Angling 59 The pike,..which likes to prowl about in slow-running, weedy waters.
1920 E. Sitwell Wooden Pegasus 101 A slow-leaking tap.
1971 Cabinet Maker & Retail Furnisher 1 Oct. 15/3 Rather than let a slow selling line stand on the shop floor it is reduced immediately.
1975 C. Easton Search for Sam Goldwyn (1976) xxi. 234 Sherwood was a slow-speaking, soft-voiced man with a bone-dry wit.
2009 Wired Jan. 121/1 Lung cancer may come in at least two forms: fast-growing, lethal tumors.., and slow-growing masses that are essentially benign.
b. With past participles forming adjectives, as slow-breathed, slow-drawn, slow-roasted, slow-run, slow-spoken, etc.See also slow-cooked adj.
ΚΠ
1660 C. Ducket Sparks from Golden Altar xii. 151 The slow spoken man hath much the advantage.
1727 J. Thomson Summer 76 Yonder slow-extinguish'd Clouds.
1798 H. M. Williams Tour Switzerland I. 21 Responsive to the solemn, slow-breathed chant.
1849 D. Rock Church our Fathers II. 495 The sullen splash of slow-drawn oars.
1891 Daily News 14 Feb. 3/4 In a slow-run race he was defeated by Sheridan.
1910 W. de la Mare Three Mulla-mulgars xi. 153 Between his slow-drawled, shakety notes of deep and shrill Nod listened for the least stir in the forest.
1914 R. Kipling For All we Have 3 Comfort, content, delight, The ages' slow-bought gain.
1944 E. Blunden Shells by Stream 43 Your eyes..Enfold the slow-bloomed scenes.
2015 Town & Country Sept. 27/2 A flavor-packed rice bowl starring breaded slow-roasted pork belly.
C2.
slow back int. Golf used as a direction to a golfer to swing the club back slowly when taking a stroke.
ΚΠ
1886 H. G. Hutchinson Hints on Golf 17 Golfers have gone so far as to instruct their caddies to say to them, ‘Slow back’, so as to keep them in mind of this precept each time they addressed themselves to drive the ball.
1922 P. G. Wodehouse Clicking of Cuthbert iii. 73 Slow back—keep the head.
1993 Herald (Glasgow) (Nexis) 26 May 26 Slow back, head down, swish. Missed the ball completely but caught my hat in my hand as it fell off.
slow-pacing adj. that moves, operates, or progresses slowly or gradually; sluggish.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > manner of action > slowness of action or operation > [adjective]
lateeOE
slackc1000
slowc1225
heavya1400
lent14..
slowfulc1400
sloth1412
latesomea1425
sluggedc1430
sluggingc1430
tardy1483
lingeringa1547
tarde1547
sleuth1567
snailish1581
slow-moving1592
lagging1597
snail-paced1597
snail-slow1600
slow-pacing1616
snail-like1639
sluggish1640
ignave1657
languishing1693
slow-stepping1793
lentitudinous1801
somnolent1812
slow-coachish1844
tardigradous1866
vermigrade1938
slow-cooking1968
the world > movement > rate of motion > slowness > [adjective] > moving slowly
slowa1398
slow-movingc1450
slow-bellied1554
lazya1568
slow-footed1587
slow-paced1594
leaden-footed1596
snaily1596
snail-paced1597
dragglinga1599
leaden-heeled1598
ambling1600
slow-foot1607
sluggisha1616
slow-pacing1616
tortoise-paced1623
slow-going1634
leaden-stepping1645
tardigradous1652
tardigrade1656
snail-crawleda1658
dawdling1773
loitering1791–2
slow-stepping1793
creepy1794
lugging1816
tortoise-footed1818
crawling1820
creepy-crawly1858
slowing1877
lead-foot1896
soodling1951
1616 S. S. Honest Lawyer i. sig. B2 Let the few drops of my slow-pacing blood, That stands in my cold channels, expiate yours.
1773 H. More Search after Happiness (ed. 2) 10 When slow-pacing Time shall spread It's silver blossoms O'er my head.
1891 J. L. Kipling Beast & Man in India x. 285 Besides his services as a slow-pacing pack animal.., the camel has many uses unnoticed by Europeans.
2020 Daily News (Sri Lanka) (Nexis) 28 Jan. [The film] loses steam in the first few scenes. This is mainly due to the slow-pacing plot and unfunny jokes.
slow-releasing adj. that releases something, or is released, slowly; = slow-release adj. (in various senses).
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > physics > electromagnetic radiation > electricity > electrical engineering > controlling device or process > [adjective]
slow-releasing1894
slow-release1901
1894 Railroad Gaz. 30 Mar. 227/2 In such service slow releasing triples [sc. air-brakes] would not be considered.
1923 T. E. Herbert Telephony xiii. 334 The special feature of the slow releasing relay..is the extension of the core on which is placed a solid copper collar.
1970 Fertility & Sterility 21 201 (title) Intrauterine administration of progesterone by a slow releasing device.
2007 K. Cook Get Healthy for Good 243 Try to ensure your child has a combination of slow-releasing carbohydrates.
slow-stepping adj. that has or is characterized by a slow pace or gait; sedate; ponderous.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > manner of action > slowness of action or operation > [adjective]
lateeOE
slackc1000
slowc1225
heavya1400
lent14..
slowfulc1400
sloth1412
latesomea1425
sluggedc1430
sluggingc1430
tardy1483
lingeringa1547
tarde1547
sleuth1567
snailish1581
slow-moving1592
lagging1597
snail-paced1597
snail-slow1600
slow-pacing1616
snail-like1639
sluggish1640
ignave1657
languishing1693
slow-stepping1793
lentitudinous1801
somnolent1812
slow-coachish1844
tardigradous1866
vermigrade1938
slow-cooking1968
the world > movement > rate of motion > slowness > [adjective] > moving slowly
slowa1398
slow-movingc1450
slow-bellied1554
lazya1568
slow-footed1587
slow-paced1594
leaden-footed1596
snaily1596
snail-paced1597
dragglinga1599
leaden-heeled1598
ambling1600
slow-foot1607
sluggisha1616
slow-pacing1616
tortoise-paced1623
slow-going1634
leaden-stepping1645
tardigradous1652
tardigrade1656
snail-crawleda1658
dawdling1773
loitering1791–2
slow-stepping1793
creepy1794
lugging1816
tortoise-footed1818
crawling1820
creepy-crawly1858
slowing1877
lead-foot1896
soodling1951
1793 G. Butt Poems I. 71 Too much I chain'd my genius to the car Of Art's slow-stepping pomp.
1880 M. A. Sprague Earnest Trifler xii. 135 Mr. Sterling was tall, slow-stepping, robust.
1950 C. Harris Street of Knives viii. 127 He began again, and his slow-stepping voice had a disgruntled sound to it.
2011 HowNiKan Aug. 18/3 Next its ladies' choice, and partners stroll onto the grass and dance their slow-stepping dance.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2021; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
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n.1eOEn.21954adj.eOEv.OEadv.a1398
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