slur

[ slur ]

verb (used with object)

, slurred, slur·ring.

1. to pass over lightly or without due mention or consideration (often followed by over ):

   The report slurred over her contribution to the enterprise.

   Synonyms: gloss, disregard, slight

2. to pronounce (a syllable, word, etc.) indistinctly by combining, reducing, or omitting sounds, as in hurried or careless utterance.
3. to cast aspersions on; calumniate; disparage; depreciate:

   The candidate was viciously slurred by his opponent.

   Synonyms: asperse, slander

4. Music.
   1. to sing to a single syllable or play without a break (two or more tones of different pitch).
   2. to mark with a slur.
5. Chiefly British Dialect. to smirch, sully, or stain.

verb (used without object)

, slurred, slur·ring.

1. to read, speak, or sing hurriedly and carelessly.

noun

1. a slurred utterance or sound.
2. a disparaging remark or a slight: an ethnic slur against people of Irish descent.

   quick to take offense at a slur;

   an ethnic slur against people of Irish descent.

   Synonyms: affront, insult, innuendo

   Antonyms: compliment

3. a blot or stain, as upon reputation:

   a slur on his good name.

   Synonyms: disgrace, stigma

4. Music.
   1. the combination of two or more tones of different pitch, sung to a single syllable or played without a break.
   2. a curved mark indicating this.
5. Printing. a spot that is blurred or unclear as a result of paper, plate, or blanket slippage.

slur

/ slɜː /

verb

1. often foll by over to treat superficially, hastily, or without due deliberation; gloss
2. also intr to pronounce or utter (words, etc) indistinctly
3. to speak disparagingly of or cast aspersions on
4. music to execute (a melodic interval of two or more notes) smoothly, as in legato performance
5. also intr to blur or smear
6. archaic.
   to stain or smear; sully

noun

1. an indistinct sound or utterance
2. a slighting remark; aspersion
3. a stain or disgrace, as upon one's reputation; stigma
4. music
   1. a performance or execution of a melodic interval of two or more notes in a part
   2. the curved line ( or ) indicating this
5. a blur or smear

Other Words From

• un·slurred adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of slur¹

First recorded in 1595–1605; of multiple origins; in the sense “pass over without due consideration,” compare Low German slurren “to shuffle,” Dutch sleuren “to trail, drag”; in the sense “blot or stain,” compare Middle Dutch slore ( Dutch sloor ) “sluttish woman”

Word History and Origins

Origin of slur¹

C15: probably from Middle Low German; compare Middle Low German slūren to drag, trail, Middle Dutch sloren, Dutch sleuren

Example Sentences

It was hard to tell from Burr’s monologue, which started with a story about getting the flu with a thrown-in ethnic slur: “You’re trying to figure out who gave it to you. You’re going through this Rolodex of people that coughed on you, sniffed near you, walked by an Asian or something.”

From Los Angeles Times

“They ridiculed us and belittled us,” she said of her opponents, adding that they called her “every depraved slur in the book.”

From Los Angeles Times

Further video shows Kelce in a heated exchange with the man, using the same slur back at him multiple times.

From Los Angeles Times

In video footage circulating on social media of Kelce greeting fans outside the stadium, a man can be heard shouting an anti-gay slur in reference to Kelce’s brother, Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, for “dating Taylor Swift.”

From Los Angeles Times

Lawler has since apologized for the 2006 costume, however, he again found himself the subject of criticism after he declined to condemn the use of a racial slur for Black people by another participant at a forum on combating antisemitism where he spoke, and for pivoting to a different subject when a far-right radio talk show host told Lawler that neither Islamophobia nor white supremacy exists but that Black supremacy does.

From Salon

Related Words

• garble
• mispronounce