slacken

[ slak-uhn ]

verb (used with or without object)

1. to make or become less active, vigorous, intense, etc.

   Synonyms: abate, slack, loosen, relax

2. to make or become looser or less taut.

   Synonyms: abate, slack, loosen, relax

   Antonyms: tense, tighten

slacken

/ ˈslækən /

verb

1. to make or become looser
2. to make or become slower, less intense, etc

Other Words From

• un·slackened adjective
• un·slacken·ing adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of slacken¹

First recorded in 1570–80; slack ¹ + -en ¹

Example Sentences

As winds also slacken, pretty much the whole area will dip to or below freezing tonight, with lows ranging from the mid-20s to low 30s.

From Washington Post

Maybe the Cardinals’ most jaw-slackening play, among many candidates, came against the San Francisco 49ers in Week 5, when Murray arced a pass over a patch of sideline, and Moore, 33 yards downfield, anchored his toes to the turf and reeled it in.

From FiveThirtyEight

Humidity slackens to moderate levels and highs are mainly in the mid-80s.

From Washington Post

The drug-approval process slackened considerably, and the result has been many products with minimal effectiveness generating enormous profits.

From Nautilus

Although Yahoo’s traffic has held steady, advertisers’ interest has slackened in the shadow of its parent organization.

From Digiday

In the 1990s, his pace began to slacken, and eventually the hits evaporated.

From The Daily Beast

The country became more broken, and the grade so pronounced that the horses were compelled to slacken their pace.

From Project Gutenberg

It seems that once started on the rails of fortune, people need a certain time to slacken their speed or stop.

From Project Gutenberg

By 8.0 the musketry and the shelling began to slacken down although there was a good deal of desultory shooting.

From Project Gutenberg

If this is repeated a great many times the nut may slacken back so far as to become useless.

From Project Gutenberg

We were gaining on him still, and the heat of the day made him slacken his pace.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• abate
• diminish
• loosen
• mitigate
• relent
• retard
• sag
• soften
• subside
• weaken