slough

slough
slough1
/slow/ for 1, 2, 4; /slooh/ for 3, n.
1. an area of soft, muddy ground; swamp or swamplike region.
2. a hole full of mire, as in a road.
3. Also, slew, slue. Northern U.S. and Canadian. a marshy or reedy pool, pond, inlet, backwater, or the like.
4. a condition of degradation, despair, or helplessness.
[bef. 900; ME; OE sloh; c. MLG sloch, MHG sluoche ditch]
slough2
sloughiness, n.sloughy, adj.
/sluf/, n.
1. the outer layer of the skin of a snake, which is cast off periodically.
2. Pathol. a mass or layer of dead tissue separated from the surrounding or underlying tissue.
3. anything that is shed or cast off.
4. Cards. a discard.
v.i.
5. to be or become shed or cast off, as the slough of a snake.
6. to cast off a slough.
7. Pathol. to separate from the sound flesh, as a slough.
8. Cards. to discard a card or cards.
v.t.
9. to dispose or get rid of; cast (often fol. by off): to slough off a bad habit.
10. to shed as or like a slough.
11. Cards. to discard (cards).
12. slough over, to treat as slight or trivial: to slough over a friend's mistake.
Also, sluff.
[1250-1300; ME slughe, slouh skin of a snake; c. G Schlauch skin, bag]
Syn. 6. molt.

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▪ town and unitary authority, Berkshire, England, United Kingdom
      town and unitary authority, geographic county of Berkshire, England. Most of the unitary authority lies within the historic county of Buckinghamshire, but it also includes Poyle, part of the historic county of Middlesex. It lies on the western periphery of the Greater London metropolitan area, along the Great West Road and M4 motorway. The town of Slough developed into a centre of varied light industries after World War I and has subsequently grown rapidly. Area, unitary authority, 13 square miles (33 square km). Pop. (2005 est.) unitary authority, 117,500; (2001) Slough Urban Area, 141,848.

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Universalium. 2010.

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  • Slough — …   Wikipedia Español

  • Slough — Slough, n. [OE. slogh, slough, AS. sl[=o]h a hollow place; cf. MHG. sl[=u]ch an abyss, gullet, G. schlucken to swallow; also Gael. & Ir. sloc a pit, pool. ditch, Ir. slug to swallow. Gr. ????? to hiccough, to sob.] 1. A place of deep mud or mire; …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Slough — Slough …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Slough — Slough, v. i. [imp. & p. p. {Sloughed}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Sloughing}.] (Med.) To form a slough; to separate in the form of dead matter from the living tissues; often used with off, or away; as, a sloughing ulcer; the dead tissues slough off slowly …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • slough — slough1 [sluf] n. [ME slouh, akin to Ger schlauch, a skin, bag < IE base * sleug̑ , to glide, slip > Latvian sl užât, to slide] 1. the skin of a snake, esp. the outer layer that is periodically cast off 2. any castoff layer, covering, etc …   English World dictionary

  • slough|y — slough|y1 «SLOW ee», adjective, slough|i|er, slough|i|est. soft and muddy; full of soft, deep mud; miry: »sloughy creeks. slough|y2 «SLUHF ee», adjective. of dead skin; covered with dead skin or tissue …   Useful english dictionary

  • Slough — Slough, v. t. To cast off; to discard as refuse. [1913 Webster] New tint the plumage of the birds, And slough decay from grazing herds. Emerson. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Slough — Slough, obs. imp. of {Slee}, to slay. Slew. Chaucer. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Slough — Slough, n. [OE. slugh, slouh; cf. MHG. sl?ch the skin of a serpent, G. schlauch a skin, a leather bag or bottle.] 1. The skin, commonly the cast off skin, of a serpent or of some similar animal. [1913 Webster] 2. (Med.) The dead mass separating… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Slough — Slough, a. Slow. [Obs.] Chaucer. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • slough — Ⅰ. slough [1] ► NOUN 1) a swamp. 2) a situation characterized by lack of progress or activity. DERIVATIVES sloughy adjective. ORIGIN Old English. Ⅱ. slough …   English terms dictionary

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