slippery

[ slip-uh-ree, slip-ree ]

adjective

, slip·per·i·er, slip·per·i·est.

1. tending or liable to cause slipping slip or sliding, as ice, oil, a wet surface, etc.:

   a slippery road.

2. tending to slip from the hold or grasp or from position:

   a slippery rope.

3. likely to slip away or escape:

   slippery prospects.

4. not to be depended on; fickle; shifty, tricky, or deceitful.
5. unstable or insecure, as conditions:

   a slippery situation.

slippery

/ -prɪ; ˈslɪpərɪ /

adjective

1. causing or tending to cause objects to slip

   a slippery road

2. liable to slip from the grasp, a position, etc
3. not to be relied upon; cunning and untrustworthy

   a slippery character

4. (esp of a situation) liable to change; unstable
5. slippery slope
   a course of action that will lead to disaster or failure

Derived Forms

• ˈslipperily, adverb
• ˈslipperiness, noun

Other Words From

• slipper·i·ness noun
• non·slipper·y adjective
• un·slipper·y adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of slippery¹

1525–35; alteration of slipper ²; compare Low German slipperig; -y ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of slippery¹

C16: probably coined by Coverdale to translate German schlipfferig in Luther's Bible (Psalm 35:6); related to Old English slipor slippery

Example Sentences

Prof Varanasi and his colleagues have developed a range of coatings that make surfaces slippery and therefore resistant to the formation of biofilms.

From BBC

This is then sprayed onto the interior of a pipe or tube, which makes that inner surface extremely slippery.

From BBC

Writing in The New York Times, Jason Farago explained that the title “Comedian” is ironic — “for Mr. Cattelan, like all the best clowns, is a tragedian who makes our certainties as slippery as a banana peel.”

From New York Times

Starting out in Igneada, in the north of the country, he walked along a slippery, uneven trail for half a day, through dense forest and sharp shrubbery in the direction of Bulgaria.

From BBC

Back in BP, the Calder Quartet brought exquisite warmth to the sunny, slippery melodic lines in Missy Mazzoli’s “Death Valley Junction.”

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• elusive
• shifty
• slick
• smooth
• treacherous
• tricky
• unpredictable
• unsafe
• unstable