Etymology

slack

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Today it means: The part of anything that hangs loose, having no strain upon it. Full definition →

Middle English slak ← Old English slæc ← Proto-Germanic *slakaz
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slack · noun, adjective, adverb1

  1. Proto-Germanic · inherited from*slakaz
  2. Old English · inherited fromslæc“slack”
  3. Middle English · inherited fromslak
  4. English todayslack

From Middle English slak, from Old English slæc (“slack”), from Proto-Germanic *slakaz. For sense of coal dust, compare slag.

slack · verb2

  1. Proto-Germanic · inherited from*slakōną“to slack, slacken”
  2. Old English · inherited fromslacian
  3. Middle English · inherited fromslakken
  4. English todayslack

From Middle English slakken, slaken, from Old English slacian, from Proto-Germanic *slakōną (“to slack, slacken”).

slack · noun3

Either from the adjective in Etymology 1 or the verb in Etymology 2.

slack · noun4

  1. Old Norse · derived fromslakki“a slope”
  2. Middle English · inherited fromslak
  3. English todayslack

From Middle English slak, from Old Norse slakki (“a slope”). Cognate with Icelandic slakki, Norwegian slakke.

slack · noun5

Of unknown origin. Possibly related to Middle Dutch slacke or Middle Low German slecke. Doublet of slag.

Slack · proper noun6

  1. Proto-Slavic · derived from*sъvolkъ
  2. English todaySlack

* As an English and Dutch surname, from the adjective slack. * Also as an English surname, from the noun slack (“shallow valley”). * Possibly also a Slovene surname Americanized from slak (“bindweed”), from Proto-Slavic *sъvolkъ. * The name of the software is an acronym of Searchable Log of All Conversation and Knowledge.

Words from the same roots

Old Englishslæc all →

slake

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.