slang-whanger 
stable, the personal disputes of two miserable slang-whang- 
erg, the cleaning of the streets, or the economy of a dust- 
cart. Irving, Salmagundi, No. 14. 
Slangy (slang'i), a. [< slang* + -y 1 .] 1. Of, 
pertaining to, or of the nature of slang: as, a 
xlitngy expression. 2. Addicted to the use of 
slang. 
Both were too gaudy, too slangy, too odorous of cigars, 
and too much given to horseflesh. 
JHckens, Our Mutual Friend, ii. 4. 
slank (slaugk), a. [= D. slank = MLG. slank = 
MHG. slanc, G. schlank = Dan. slank (cf. Sw. 
slankig), slender, meager; cf. Dan. slunken 1 , 
lank, gaunt ; connected with slink 9 , and prob. 
ult. with slink 1 . Cf. lank 1 .] Slim; slender; 
lank. [Prov. Eng.] 
He is a man of ruddy complexion, brown hair and stank, 
hanging a little below his jaw-bones. 
The Grand Impostor Examined (1656). (Damei.) 
Blanket (slang'ket), . [Cf. slank and siting 2 ."] 
Same as slang 2 . 
slant (slant), f. [Also dial. (Sc.) sclent, sklent, 
sklint; < ME. slenten, sclenten, slope, glide, < 
Sw. dial, slenta, sliinta, slope, glide, Sw. slinta 
(pret. slant), slide, slip, glance (as a knife); 
cf. Sw. slutta ("slunta), slant, slope, Sw. dial. 
slant, slippery; cf. slink 1 . The Corn, slyntyii, 
slide,glide alone, W. ysglent, a slide, are prob. < 
E.] L.intrans. I. To lie obliquely to some line, 
whether horizontal or perpendicular; slope: as, 
a slanting roof. 
It ... dented doune to the erthe. 
Kynge Arthnre (ed. Southcy), II. 281. 
Lo ! on the side of yonder slanting hill, 
Beneath a spreading oak's broad foliage, sits 
The shepherd swain. Dodsley, Agriculture, ill. 244. 
The shades that slanted o'er the green. 
Keats, I Stood Tiptoe upon a Little Hill. 
2. To go or turn off at a small angle from some 
direct line; deviate: as, at this point the road 
slants off to the right. Specifically 3. To ex- 
aggerate ; "draw the long bow"; fib. [Scotch.] 
4. To have a leaning; incline. 
"Your minister sartin doos slant a leetle towards th' 
Arminians; he don't quite walk the crack," Josh says, ses 
he. H. B. Stowe, Oldtown, p. 483. 
Slanting Stitch, a stitch in double crochet-work produ- 
cing short diagonal lines in the finished fabric. 
II. trans. To give a sloping direction to; 
set or place at an angle to something else: as, 
slant the mirror a little more, 
slant (slant), a. andm. [< ME. slants, slimte, in 
the phrase on xlante, o slonte, a slants; < slant, 
v. Cf. aslant.] I. a. Sloping; oblique; inclined 
from a direct line or plane. 
The clouds 
Justling, or push'd with winds, rude in their shock, 
Tine the slant lightning. Milton, P. L., x. 1075. 
Clouds through which the setting day 
Flung a giant glory far away. 
Whittier, The Preacher. 
1'he busiest man can hardly resist the influence of such 
a day ; farmers are prone to bask in the slant sunlight at 
such times, and to talk to one another over line-fences or 
seated on top-rails. E. Eggleston, The Graysons, xxxi. 
Slant fire, in gun, Seejire, 13. 
II. . 1. Aii oblique direction or plane; a 
slope. 
It lies on a slant. C. Richardson. 
2. An oblique reflection or gibe ; a sarcastic re- 
mark. 3. Achance; an opportunity. [Slang.] 
Slant Of Wind (naut.), a transitory breeze of favorable 
wind, or the period of its duration. 
slantendicular (slan-ten-dik'u-lar), a. [< slant 
+ -endicular as in perpendicular.] Oblique, not 
perpendicular ; indirect. [Humorous slang.] 
And he [St. Vitus] must put himself [in the calendar] 
under the first saint, with a slantendicular reference to the 
other. De Morgan, Budget of Paradoxes, p. 289. 
Slantingly (slan'ting-li), adv. 1. In a slanting 
or sloping manner or direction. 2f. Indi- 
rectly. 
Their first attempt which they made was to prefer 
bills of accusation against the archbishop's chaplains and 
preachers, . . . and slantingly through their sides strik- 
ing at the archbishop himself. Strype, Cranmer, 1. 159. 
slantly (slant'li), adv. Obliquely; in an in- 
clined direction ; slopingly; slantingly. 
The yellow Moon looks slantly down, 
Through seaward mists, upon the town. 
R. H. Stoddard, A Serenade. 
slantwise (slant' wiz), adv. Slantingly; slantly. 
The sunset rays thy valley fill, 
Poured slantinse down the long defile. 
Whittier, The Merrimack. 
slap 1 (slap), v. 1. ; pret. and pp. slapped, ppr. 
slapping. [< ME. "sluppen, < LG. slappen (> G. 
schlappen), slap ; prob. akin to IanM and per- 
haps ult. to stay 1 .] 1. To strike with the open 
hand or with something flat : as, to slap one on 
the back; to slap a child on the hand. 
.=5684 
Mrs. Baynes had gone up stairs to her own apartment, 
had slapped her boys, and WHS looking out of the window. 
Thackeray, Philip, xxvi. 
In yonder green meadow, to memory dear, 
He slaps a mosquito, and brushes a tear. 
0. W. Holme*, City and Country. 
2. To strike with ; bring upon or against some- 
thing with a blow. 
Dick, who thus long had passive sat, 
Here strok'd his Chin and cock'd his Hat, 
Then slapp'd his Hand upon the Board. 
Pnor, Alma, i. 
slap 1 (slap), H. [< ME. slappe, < LG. 
slappe (> G. sclilappe), the sound of a blow, a 
sounding box on the ears, a slap, = OHG. 
"slapfe (> It. schiaffo), a box on the ear: see 
slap 1 , v.] 1. A blow given with the open hand, 
or with something flat. 
Warre the home and heles lest thai flynge 
A slappe to the. 
Palladia*, Husbondrie (E. E. T. S.), p. 1S2. 
He hastened up to him, gave him a hearty shake of the 
hand, a cordial dap on the back, and some other equally 
gentle tokens of satisfaction. Miss Burney, Evelina, xxxii". 
slap 1 (slap), adr. [An elliptical use of slap 1 , 
r. and n.] With sudden and violent force; 
plump; suddenly. [Colloq.] 
The whips and short turns which in one stage or other 
of my life have come glap upon me. 
Sterne, Tristram Shandy, ill. 38. 
His horse, coming tiap on his knees with him, threw 
Him head over heels, and away he flew. 
Barham, Ingoldsby Legends, II. 143. 
slap 1 (slap), a. [<fcy>l, r. Cf.slaji-np, bang-up.] 
First-rate ; of the best ; "slap-up." [Slang.] 
People 's got proud now, I fancy that 's one thing, and 
must nave everything flap. 
Mayhew, London Labour and London Poor, II. 119. 
slap 2 (slap), . [Origin uncertain; perhaps a 
var. of slack 3 ; cf. Dan. slap = Sw. slapp, lax, 
loose, = D. slap = MLG. LG. slap = OHG. MHG. 
slaf, G. schlaff, feeble, weak (see sleep).] 1. 
A narrow pass between two hills. [Scotch.] 
2. A breach in a wall, hedge, or fence ; a gap. 
[Prov. Eng. and Scotch.] 3. A gap in the 
edge of a knife, etc. [Scotch.] 
slap 2 (slap), . t. [< slap" 2 , .] To break into 
gaps ; break out (an opening), as in a solid wall. 
[Prov. Eng. and Scotch.] 
slap 3 t (slap), v. An obsolete variant of slop 1 . 
slap-bang (slap'bang'), adv. [An elliptical use 
of slap 1 , v., + bang 1 , v.] With a slap and a 
bang ; hence, suddenly ; violently ; with a sud- 
den noisy dash; headlong; all at once: as, to 
go sl<ip-bang through the ice or through a win- 
dow. Also slam-bang. [Colloq.] 
slap-bang (slap'bang'), a. and n. [< slap-bang, 
TT* _1 __ I __ Li __ A 1 __ ? ___ I ____ 
adr.] I. . Violent; dashing. Also slam-bang. 
II. H. A low eating-house. [Slang, Eng.] 
They lived in the same street, walked into town every 
morning at the same hour, dined at the same slap-bang 
every day, and revelled in each other's company every 
night. Dickens, Sketches, Characters, xi. 
slap-dash (slap'dash'), adi: [An elliptical use 
of slap 1 , c., + dash, v.] In a sudden, offhand, 
abrupt, random, or headlong manner ; abrupt- 
ly ; suddenly ; all at once. [Colloq.] 
He took up a position opposite his fair entertainer, and 
with much gravity executed a solemn, but marvelously 
grotesque bow ; . . . this done, he recovered body, and 
strode away again dap-dash. C. Reads, Art, p. 20. 
slap-dash (slap'dash), a. and n. [< slap-dash, 
adv.] I. a. Dashing; offhand; abrupt; free, 
careless, or happy-go-lucky; rash or random; 
impetuous: as, a slap-dash manner; slap-dash 
work; a slap-dash writer. [Colloq.] 
It was a slap-dash style, unceremonious, free and easy 
an American style. Bulwer, My Novel, iii. 8. 
The slapdash judgments upon artists in others [letters] 
are very characteristic (of Landor). 
Lowell, The Century, XXXV. 515. 
H. n. 1. A composition of lime and coarse 
sand, mixed to a liquid consistency and applied 
to exterior walls as a preservative ; rough-cast- 
ing; barling. [Prov. Eng.] 2. The outside 
plaster filling of a half-timbered house, be- 
tween the beams. 
The wood is painted of the darkest possible red, and 
the gray slap-dash is filled with red granite pebbles. 
The Century, XXXII. 423. 
3. Offhand, careless, happy-go-lucky, or ill-con- 
sidered action or work. [Colloq.] 
As a specimen of newspaper slapdash we may point to 
the description of General Ignatieff as " the Russian Mr. 
Gladstone." Athenaum, No. 3197, p. 146. 
4f. Violent abuse. 
Hark ye, Monsieur, if you don't march off I shall play 
you such an English courant of slap-dash presently that 
shan't out of your ears this twelvemonth. 
Mrs. Centlivre, Perplexed Lovers, iii. 
slash 
slap-dash (slap'dash), r. t. [< xltiii-diixli, adr.] 
1. To do in a rough or careless manner. [Col- 
loq.] 2. To rough-cast (a wall) with mortar. 
slape (slap), . [< Icel. xlrii; also x/ijipr, slip- 
pery, < slipa, be slim or smooth, = Sw. slipa = 
Dan. slibe (slipa, tr., grind) = G. sclileifen, slip: 
see slip 1 . Ct.slab 1 .] Slippery; smooth; hence, 
crafty; hypocritical. [Prov. Eng.] Slape ale, 
plain ale, as opposed to medicated or mixed ale. Slape- 
face, a soft-spoken, crafty hypocrite. HattiweU. 
slapjack (slap'jak), w. S&rae&s flapjack. [U.S.] 
Anon he passed the fragrant buckwheat fields, breath- 
ing the odor of the bee- hive ; and, as he beheld them, soft 
anticipations stole over his mind of dainty slapjacks, well 
buttered, and garnished with honey or treacle. 
Irving, Sketch- Book, p. 438. 
slappaty-poucht (slap'a-ti-poucb), n. [A va- 
riation, imitative of quick motion, of slap the 
l/di/cli, i. e. pocket.] The act or process of slap- 
ping the hands, when cold, against the sides to 
warm them. [Rare.] 
I cannot but with the last degree of sorrow and anguish 
inform you of our present wretched condition ; we have 
even tired our palms and our ribs at slappaty-pouch, and 
... I [Charon] had almost forgot to handle my sculls. 
TomBrmm, Works, II. 126. (Daviet.) 
slapper (slap'er), n. [< slap 1 + -er 1 .] 1. One 
who or that which slaps. 2. A person or thing 
of large size ; a whopper. [Vulgar.] 
slapping (slap'ing), a. [Prop. ppr. of slap 1 , v.] 
Very big ; great. [Vulgar.] 
slap-sancet (slap'sas), . [< slaj>9, v., + obj. 
sauce.] A parasite. Minsheu. 
Slapsavce fellows, slabberdegullion druggels, lubbardly 
louts. Urjuhart, tr. of Rabelais, i. 26. 
slap-sided (slap'si'ded), a. Same as slab-sided. 
slap-up (slap'up), a. [Cf. slap 1 and bang-up.] 
Excellent ; first-rate ; fine ; scrumptious ; bang- 
up: as, a slap-up hotel. [Slang.] 
It ain't a fortnight back since a smart female servant, 
in slap-up black, sold me a basket full of doctor's bottles. 
Mayhew, London Labour and London Poor, II. 122. 
Might he [Bob Jones] not quarter a countess's coat on his 
brougham along with the Jones' arms, or, more slap-up 
still, have the two shields painted on the panels with the 
coronet over? Thackeray, Newcomes, xxxi. 
slargando, slargandosi (slar-gan'do, -se), a. 
[It., ppr. of slargare, enlarge, widen, dilate,< L. 
ex, out, + largus, large: see large.] In music, 
same as rallentando. 
slash 1 (slash), v. [< ME. slaschen, < OF. escle- 
cher, esclescher, csclischer, esclechier, dismember, 
sever, disunite : same as csclichier, esclicier, es- 
clicer, > E. slice: see slice and slish, of which 
slash 1 is a doublet. The vowel a appears in 
the related word slate: see state 2 . In defs. 4, 5 
(where cf. the similar cut, n., 2) prob. confused 
with lash 1 .] I. trans. 1. To cut with long in- 
cisions; gash; slit; slice. 
They which will excell the rest in gallantry, and would 
seeme to haue slaine and eaten the most enimiee. sloth and 
cut their flesh, and put therein a blacke powder, which 
neuer will bee done away. Purchas, Pilgrimage, p. 837. 
2. To cut with a violent sweep ; cut by striking 
violently and at random, as with a sword or 
an ax. 
Then both drew their swords, and so cut 'em and slasht 'em 
That five of them did fall. 
Robin Hood's Birth (Child's Ballads, V. 360). 
But presently slash off his traiterous head. 
Greene, Alphonsus (Works, ed. Dyce, II. 28). 
3. To ornament, as a garment, by cutting slits 
in the cloth, and arranging lining of brilliant 
colors to be seen underneath. 
One Man wears his Doublet slash'd, another lac'd, another 
plain. Sdden, Table-Talk, p. 102. 
Costly his garb his Flemish ruff 
Fell o'er his doublet, shaped of buff, 
With satin nl*h\l and lined. 
Scott, L. of L. M.,v. 16. 
4. To lash. [Bare.] 
Daniel, a sprightly swain that used to slash 
The vigorous steeds that drew his lord's calash. 
W. King. 
5. To crack or snap, as a whip. 
She slashed a whip she had in her hand ; the cracks 
thereof were loud and dreadful. 
Dr. H. More, Mystery of Godliness (1660), p. 220. 
[(Latham.) 
H. intrans. 1. To strike violently and at ran- 
dom with a cutting instrument; lay about one 
with sharp blows. 
Hewing and slashing at their idle shades. 
Spenser, F. Q.,11. ix. 15. 
If we would see him in his altitudes, we must go back 
to the House of Commons ; . . . there he cuts and slashes. 
Roger North, Examen, p. 268. 
2. To cut or move rapidly. 
The Sybarite slothed through the waves like a knife 
through cream-cheese. Hannay, Singleton Fontenoy. 
