different between finish vs slay

English

Etymology

From Middle English finishen, finisshen, finischen, from Old French finiss-, stem of some of the conjugated forms of finir, from Latin f?n?re, present active infinitive of f?ni?.

Pronunciation

• enPR: f?n'?sh, IPA^(key): /?f?n??/
• Homophone: Finnish

Noun

finish (plural finishes)

1. An end; the end of anything.
2. A protective coating given to wood or metal and other surfaces.

3. The result of any process changing the physical or chemical properties of cloth.
4. A finishing touch; careful elaboration; polish.
5. (sports) A shot on goal, especially one that ends in a goal.

Translations

Verb

finish (third-person singular simple present finishes, present participle finishing, simple past and past participle finished)

1. (transitive) To complete (something).

2. (transitive) To apply a treatment to (a surface or similar).
3. (transitive) To change an animal's food supply in the months before it is due for slaughter, with the intention of fattening the animal.

4. (intransitive) To come to an end.

5. (transitive) To put an end to; to destroy.

   These rumours could finish your career.

6. (intransitive) To reach orgasm.

Usage notes

• (transitive, to complete): This is a catenative verb that takes the gerund (the -ing form). See Appendix:English catenative verbs

Antonyms

• (to complete): initiate, begin, start

Derived terms

• nice guys finish last

Translations

Related terms

• finish line
• finishing school

Anagrams

• fishin'

Danish

Etymology

From English finish.

Noun

finish c (singular definite finishen, not used in plural form)

1. (the appearance after) fine-tuning, finishing touch
2. finish (a spectacular end in a race or a competition)

Further reading

• “finish” in Den Danske Ordbog

Dutch

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?f?.n??/
• Hyphenation: fi?nish

Etymology 1

Borrowed from English finish.

Noun

finish m (uncountable)

1. finish; end

Derived terms

• finishlijn

Etymology 2

See the etymology of the main entry.

Verb

finish

1. first-person singular present indicative of finishen
2. imperative of finishen

English

Etymology

From Middle English sleen, slayn, from Old English sl?an (“to strike, beat, smite, stamp, forge, sting, slay, kill, impact”), from Proto-West Germanic *slahan, from Proto-Germanic *slahan? (“to fight, strike, kill”), from Proto-Indo-European *slak- (“to hit, strike, throw”).

Cognate with Dutch slaan (“to beat, hit, strike”), Low German slaan (“hit, strike”), German schlagen (“to beat, hit, strike”), Danish, Norwegian and Swedish slå (“to knock, beat, strike”), Icelandic slá (“to strike”). Related to slaughter, onslaught.

Pronunciation

• enPR: sl?, IPA^(key): /sle?/
• Rhymes: -e?
• Homophones: sleigh, sley

Verb

slay (third-person singular simple present slays, present participle slaying, simple past slew or slayed, past participle slain or slayed or yslain)

1. (now literary) To kill, murder.
   • c. 1596-97, William Shakespeare, The Merchant of Venice, Act II scene i^[2]:

     The Prince of Morocco:

     […] By this scimitar,

     That slew the Sophy and a Persian prince

     That won three fields of Sultan Solyman,

     I would outstare the sternest eyes that look,

     Outbrave the heart most daring on earth,

     Pluck the young sucking cubs from the she-bear,

     Yea, mock the lion when he roars for prey,

     To win thee, lady. […]

2. (literary) To eradicate or stamp out.

   You must slay these thoughts.

3. (by extension, hyperbolic, colloquial) To defeat, overcome (in a competition or contest).
   • 1956, “Giants Slay Bears in Pro Title Battle”, in Lodi News-Sentinel, 1956 December 31, page 8.
   • 1985, “Redskins slay Giants; Thiesmann shatters leg”, in The Gadsden Times, 1985 November 19, page D1-5.
   • 1993, Jack Curry, “Yanks’ Bullpen Falls Short Again”, in The New York Times, 1993 April 21:

     The Yankees were actually slayed by two former Yankees because Rich Gossage pitched one scoreless inning in relief of Eckersley to notch his first victory.

4. (slang) To delight or overwhelm, especially with laughter.

   Ha ha! You slay me!

5. (slang, transitive, intransitive) To amaze, stun or otherwise incapacitate by awesomeness; to be awesome at something; to kill (slang sense).
6. (slang) to have sex with
   • 2015 Sexual Harassment in Education and Work Settings: Current Research and Best Practices for Prevention: Current Research and Best Practices for Prevention

     The Online Slang Dictionary offers nearly 200 words referring to sexual intercourse. Many of the terms and phrases connote violence, such as: “bang,” “beat,” “chopped up,” “cut,” “hit,” “hit raw,” “hit that,” “kick it,” “nail,” “pound,” “ram,” “slap and tickle,” “slay,” “smack,” “smash,” and “spank”

Usage notes

• The alternative past tense and past participle form "slayed" is most strongly associated with the various slang senses:

  Harry Charles Witwer (1929) Yes Man's Land?^[3], page 254: “"Cutey, you slayed me !" grins Jackie, working fast. "I guess that's what made the rest of 'em look so bad — you was so good!"”

• In recent use, "slayed" is also often found associated with the other senses as well. However, this is widely considered nonstandard.
• A review of US usage 2000-2009 in COCA suggests that "slayed" is increasing in popularity, but remains less common than "slew". It is very rare in UK usage (BNC).
• "Slain" has a current usage in newspaper headlines, as being shorter than "murdered".

Synonyms

• (to kill, murder): kill, murder, assassinate; see also Thesaurus:kill
• (to defeat, overcome): conquer, defeat, overcome
• (to overwhelm or delight): kill, hit it out of the park
• (have sex with): coitize, go to bed with, sleep with; see also Thesaurus:copulate with

Derived terms

• foreslay
• slayee
• slayer

Related terms

• onslaught
• slaughter
• self-slaughter

Translations

References

Anagrams

• lays

Middle English

Alternative forms

• sleye, slaye

Etymology

From metaphorical usage of Old English slege, from Proto-West Germanic *slagi, from Proto-Germanic *slagiz.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?sl?i?(?)/

Noun

slay (plural slayes)

1. A sley or reed (part of a loom).

Descendants

• English: sley

References

• “sleie, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2018-09-25.