different between listless vs slack
listless
English
Etymology
From Middle English lystles, equivalent to list (“desire”) +? -less. Compare Dutch lusteloos (“lethargic, listless”). Doublet of lustless.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /?l?stl?s/
Adjective
listless (comparative more listless, superlative most listless)
- Lacking energy, enthusiasm, or liveliness.
- 1818, Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, Frankenstein, ch. 18:
- I passed whole days on the lake alone in a little boat, watching the clouds and listening to the rippling of the waves, silent and listless.
- 1861, Charlotte M. Yonge, The Stokesley Secret, ch. 6:
- What an entirely different set of beings were those Stokesley children in lesson-time. . . . Poor, listless, stolid, deplorable logs, with bowed backs and crossed ankles, pipy voices and heavy eyes!
- 1901, William Somerset Maugham, The Hero, ch. 21:
- The scene with Mrs. Wallace had broken his spirit, and he was listless now, indifferent to what happened.
- 2005 Nov. 29, Aryn Baker, "John Hardy: Bali Guy," Time:
- “Listless, inattentive, distracted,” he recited. “A daydreamer. Tries his best, but is too slow.”
- 1818, Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, Frankenstein, ch. 18:
Derived terms
- listlessly
- listlessness
Translations
Anagrams
- slitless
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slack
English
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /slæk/
- Rhymes: -æk
Etymology 1
From Middle English slak, from Old English slæc (“slack”), from Proto-Germanic *slakaz. For sense of coal dust, compare slag.
Noun
slack (countable and uncountable, plural slacks)
- (uncountable) The part of anything that hangs loose, having no strain upon it.
- (countable) A tidal marsh or shallow that periodically fills and drains.
- (uncountable, psychotherapy) Unconditional listening attention given by client to patient.
- 1979, Richard Dean Rosen, Psychobabble (page 93)
- The counselor is directed to give his client "free attention," or "slack," performing a kind of vigil, a version of Carl Rogers's "unconditional positive regard."
- 1983, Harvey Jackins, The Reclaiming of Power (page 14)
- We have apparently been doing this all our lives, since we were first distressed. This collection of ancient habits seems to be "energized" by the presence, or even the promise, of "slack" or free attention from any person in the situation […]
- 1979, Richard Dean Rosen, Psychobabble (page 93)
Synonyms
- (tidal marsh): slough
Translations
Adjective
slack (comparative slacker, superlative slackest)
- (normally said of a rope) Lax; not tense; not firmly extended.
- Weak; not holding fast.
- Moderate in some capacity.
- Moderately warm.
- Moderate in speed.
- Moderately warm.
- lacking diligence or care; not earnest or eager.
- Not active, successful, or violent.
- Excess; surplus to requirements.
- (slang, Caribbean, Jamaican) vulgar; sexually explicit, especially in dancehall music.
- (linguistics) Lax.
Synonyms
- (not violent, rapid, or pressing): slow, moderate, easy
Derived terms
- slacken
- slack-jawed
- slackness
Translations
Adverb
slack (not comparable)
- Slackly.
Translations
Etymology 2
From Middle English slakken, slaken, from Old English slacian, from Proto-Germanic *slak?n? (“to slack, slacken”).
Verb
slack (third-person singular simple present slacks, present participle slacking, simple past and past participle slacked)
- To slacken.
- In this business of growing rich, poor men […] should slack their pace.
- (obsolete) To mitigate; to reduce the strength of.
- To lose cohesion or solidity by a chemical combination with water; to slake.
Derived terms
- slack off
Translations
Etymology 3
Either from the adjective in Etymology 1 or the verb in Etymology 2.
Noun
slack (plural slacks)
- (rail transport) A temporary speed restriction where track maintenance or engineering work is being carried out at a particular place.
Etymology 4
From Middle English slak, from Old Norse slakki (“a slope”). Cognate with Icelandic slakki, Norwegian slakke.
Noun
slack (plural slacks)
- (countable) A valley, or small, shallow dell.
Etymology 5
Probably from German Schlacke (“dross, slag”). Doublet of slag.
Noun
slack (uncountable)
- (mining) Small coal; coal dust.
- 1905, Colliery Engineer (volume 25, page 107)
- One of the important improvements of recent years has been attained by mixing the peat pulp as it passes through the grinding machine, with other inflammable materials, such as bituminous coal dust, or slack […]
- 1905, Colliery Engineer (volume 25, page 107)
Synonyms
- culm
Derived terms
- nutty slack
Anagrams
- calks, kcals, lacks
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