sleech

S1L1E1E1C3H4

noun

Thick, soft mud that was left behind by flowing water, usually alongside riverbeds or shorelines.

OriginMiddle English sliche ← Old English *sliċ ← Proto-West Germanic *sliki →
Scrabble 11
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Meanings

nounsleech (countable and uncountable, plural sleeches)

plural sleeches · alternative verb sleach

  1. countableuncountableThick, soft mud that was left behind by flowing water, usually alongside riverbeds or shorelines.
  2. Northern IrelandcountableuncountableA soft, unstable mixture of mud and clay beneath Belfast, which is known for being difficult to build on.

    The physical nature and engineering properties of the sleech have made it desirable to investigate each site before piling.

    1970, Manning, P. I., Geology of Belfast and the Lagan Valley, H.M. Stationery Off., page 147
verbsleech (third-person singular simple present sleeches, present participle sleeching, simple past and past participle sleeched)

present singular third person sleeches · participle present sleeching · participle past sleeched · past sleeched · alternative verb sleach

  1. dialectalTo dip a vessel into water to fill it; to scoop up water, as with a bucket.
  2. ScotlandTo coax, cajole.

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*sleyg-“to slide, be slippery”
  2. Proto-Germanic*slikiz“mud, slush”
  3. Proto-West Germanic*sliki
  4. Old English*sliċ“mud, sludge”
  5. Middle Englishsliche
  6. Englishsleech

From Middle English sliche, a variant of slicche, from Old English *sliċ (“mud, sludge”), from Proto-West Germanic *sliki, from Proto-Germanic *slikiz (“mud, slush”), from Proto-Indo-European *sleyg- (“to slide, be slippery”). Doublet of slitch and sludge.

More words from Middle English, Old English, Proto-West Germanic

Full word history & related roots →

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

ScheelSchleeeschel
Cite this entry
APA

sleech. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/sleech

MLA

“sleech.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/sleech. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “sleech,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/sleech.

Source: sleech on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.