different between numb vs slack
numb
English
Etymology
From the past participle of nim (“to take”). Compare German benommen (“dazed, numb”). The final ?b? is a later addition to the spelling; it was never pronounced, and did not appear in the original word.
Pronunciation
- enPR: n?m, IPA(key): /n?m/
- Rhymes: -?m
Adjective
numb (comparative number, superlative numbest)
- Physically unable to feel, not having the power of sensation.
- Synonyms: deadened, insensible
- Emotionally unable to feel or respond in a normal way.
- numb with shock; numb with boredom
- 1915, Nellie McClung, In Times Like These, Toronto: McLeod & Allen, Chapter 2,[1]
- […] when we know that hundreds are rendered homeless every day, and countless thousands are killed and wounded, men and boys mowed down like a field of grain, and with as little compunction, we grow a little bit numb to human misery.
- 1966, Truman Capote, In Cold Blood, New York: Modern Library, 1992, Part One, p. 77,[2]
- […] seeing the dog—somehow that made me feel again. I’d been too dazed, too numb, to feel the full viciousness of it.
- 2016, Julian Barnes, The Noise of Time, Random House Canada, Part Three,[3]
- […] he submitted […] as a traitor, his mind numb with vodka, submits to a firing squad.
- Synonym: stunned
- (obsolete) Causing numbness.
- c. 1592, William Shakespeare, Richard III, Act II, Scene 1,[4]
- […] he did lap me
- Even in his own garments, and gave himself,
- All thin and naked to the numb cold night.
- c. 1592, William Shakespeare, Richard III, Act II, Scene 1,[4]
Antonyms
- sensible, sensitive
Derived terms
Related terms
- numskull
Translations
Verb
numb (third-person singular simple present numbs, present participle numbing, simple past and past participle numbed)
- (transitive) To cause to become numb (physically or emotionally).
- Synonym: benumb
- (transitive) To cause (a feeling) to be less intense.
- 1861, Elizabeth Gaskell, “The Grey Woman” in The Grey Woman and Other Tales, London: Smith, Elder & Co.,[5]
- [I was] thankful for the pain, which helped to numb my terror.
- Synonym: dull
- 1861, Elizabeth Gaskell, “The Grey Woman” in The Grey Woman and Other Tales, London: Smith, Elder & Co.,[5]
- (transitive) To cause (the mind, faculties, etc.) to be less acute.
- 1912, Saki, “The Hounds of Fate” in The Chronicles of Clovis, London: John Lane, p. 219,[6]
- […] hunger, fatigue, and despairing hopelessness had numbed his brain […]
- 1927, Hugh Lofting, Doctor Dolittle’s Garden, Part Four, Chapter 6,[7]
- The noise, the rush of air past our ears, was positively terrific. It actually seemed to numb the senses and make it almost impossible to take in impressions at all.
- 2004, Cory Doctorow, Eastern Standard Tribe, Chapter 13,[8]
- [The sofa] exhaled a breath of trapped ancient farts, barf-smell, and antiseptic, the parfum de asylum that gradually numbed my nose to all other scents on the ward.
- Synonym: dull
- 1912, Saki, “The Hounds of Fate” in The Chronicles of Clovis, London: John Lane, p. 219,[6]
- (intransitive) To become numb (especially physically).
- 1918, Lewis R. Freeman, Many Fronts, London: John Murray, “Wonders of the Teleferica,” p. 270,[9]
- […] after fumbling with numbing fingers for ten or fifteen minutes, he waved his hand with a gesture of despair […]
- 1919, Arthur Murray Chisholm, The Land of Strong Men, New York: H.K. Fly, Chapter 18,[10]
- […] once more his feet began to numb. Again he got down and stamped the circulation going, but as soon as he began to ride again they numbed.
- 1918, Lewis R. Freeman, Many Fronts, London: John Murray, “Wonders of the Teleferica,” p. 270,[9]
Derived terms
- mind-numbing
Translations
numb From the web:
- what number
- what number is may
- what number is june
- what number month is may
- what number month is april
- what number month is june
- what number is iv
- what number day of the year is it
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
slack From the web:
- what slack means
- what slacker means
- what slack does
- what slack channels to create
- what slackline should i buy
- what slackline to buy
- what slack can do
- what lack i yet
you may also like
- numb vs slack
- defame vs asperse
- extension vs overhang
- offences vs villainy
- tranquil vs goodnatured
- absurd vs facetious
- pinch vs gather
- repute vs regard
- ticket vs number
- concentration vs cluster
- elementary vs vital
- disjointed vs muddled
- crafty vs guileful
- tiresome vs insipid
- backer vs propagandist
- hated vs objectionable
- spokesman vs upholder
- dispatch vs perpetration
- hideous vs base
- tedious vs awful