Skip to content

slither

verb

  1. to slide, often in a sinusoidal or snake-like manner
L333033 on Wikidata ↗

Wiktionary

Pronunciation: /ˈslɪðə/ / /ˈsləðə/ / /ˈslɪvə/

adj

Etymology: From Middle English slitheren, alteration of slideren (“to slither, creep”), from Old English slidrian (“to slip, slide, slither”), from Proto-West Germanic *slidrōn (“to slide, slither”), from Proto-Indo-European *sleydʰ- (“to slip”), equivalent to slide + -er (frequentative suffix). Cognate with Dutch slidderen (“to slip, wriggle, slither”), German schlittern (“to slither, skid”). More at slide.

  1. Slithery; slippery.

noun

Etymology: From Middle English slitheren, alteration of slideren (“to slither, creep”), from Old English slidrian (“to slip, slide, slither”), from Proto-West Germanic *slidrōn (“to slide, slither”), from Proto-Indo-European *sleydʰ- (“to slip”), equivalent to slide + -er (frequentative suffix). Cognate with Dutch slidderen (“to slip, wriggle, slither”), German schlittern (“to slither, skid”). More at slide.

  1. A limestone rubble.
  2. A sliver.

verb

Etymology: From Middle English slitheren, alteration of slideren (“to slither, creep”), from Old English slidrian (“to slip, slide, slither”), from Proto-West Germanic *slidrōn (“to slide, slither”), from Proto-Indo-European *sleydʰ- (“to slip”), equivalent to slide + -er (frequentative suffix). Cognate with Dutch slidderen (“to slip, wriggle, slither”), German schlittern (“to slither, skid”). More at slide.

  1. To move about smoothly and from side to side.

    “[Indiana:] Wave it at anything that slithers. [Marion:] The whole place is slithering!”

    “She also had a map of the building, not that it was very large, and she'd memorized the layout. The guard station would be right around the corner, and there ought to be a counter about the height of a half-wall looking out over the corridor with only a bulletin board on the opposite wall. She crouched down, and slithered left.”

  2. To slide.

    “Some snow slides recorded have exceeded a million tons and slithered down the mountain-side at a speed of 60 miles an hour.”

    “I bent down and with both hands I scooped up as much of this pissshit as I could. The green and brown clump felt like Jello as it dripped down all over my clothes. It was slithering through inbetween^([sic]) my fingers.”