slashed; slashing; slashes
: to lash out, cut, or thrash about with or as if with an edged blade
1
: to cut with or as if with rough sweeping strokes
3
: to cut slits in (something, such as a garment) so as to reveal a color beneath
4
: to criticize cuttingly
5
: to reduce sharply : cut
1
: the act of slashing
also
: a long cut or stroke made by or as if by slashing
2
: an ornamental slit in a garment
3
a
: an open tract in a forest strewn with debris (as from logging)
b
: the debris in such a tract
4
: a mark / used typically to denote "or" (as in and/or), "and or" (as in straggler/deserter), or "per" (as in feet/second)
called also diagonal, slant, solidus, virgule
5
or slash fiction
: a genre of fan fiction which features a romantic pairing of two usually male fictional characters who are not romantically connected in the original work of fiction
If women are the prime producers of the stuff, one would imagine that slash would be as full of male-female fantasies as male-male fantasies, but that's not the case.—
Owen Smith
Owen SmithHere's a sampling of Harry Potter slash, taken from a novella called "Irresistible Poison," about a budding romance between Harry and his archenemy Draco Malfoy.—Christopher Noxon
Christopher NoxonI don't know whether Moody has read Kirk/Spock slash fiction, either, but I bet he's heard of it …—Elizabeth Hand
Elizabeth Hand
: a low swampy area often overgrown with brush
Synonyms
Examples of slash in a Sentence
Verb
Someone slashed his car's tires.
He threatened to slash the man's throat.
She slashed a path through the underbrush.
They slashed their way through the jungle.
The company has slashed prices to increase sales.
Funding for the program was slashed.
Recent Examples on the WebIsabel Garcia, Peoplemag, 14 Apr. 2024
The Biden administration has warned of a policy shift, and some Democrats have called to slash aid, if Israel doesn’t do more to limit the staggering civilian death toll and halt an emerging famine.
—Abigail Hauslohner, Washington Post, 13 Apr. 2024
Outbreaks of avian flu have also slashed foie gras production in recent years, jeopardizing the supply chain.
—Vivian Song, Robb Report, 12 Apr. 2024
Consumer advocates warn taxpayers to be cautious about hiring anyone who promises to be able to slash your tax debt, because many of those pitches are from scammers.
—Jon Healey, Los Angeles Times, 12 Apr. 2024
The layoffs are due to occur around June 9.
— Genentech, a biotech behemoth, is slashing 436 jobs in South San Francisco.
—George Avalos, The Mercury News, 11 Apr. 2024
Other than the preferential visas, sanctions on Russian air carriers and reciprocal bans on Western airlines have slashed the destinations where Russian nationals can escape their frigid winter, making already-popular Thailand an easier choice.
—TIME, 11 Apr. 2024
Ford got a big boost slashing prices, particularly on the Mach-E and, to a lesser degree, on the Lightning.
—Detroit Free Press, 3 Apr. 2024
Iger slashed about 7,000 jobs last year in an effort to cut costs.
—Andrew R. Chow, TIME, 3 Apr. 2024
PCMAG, 27 Mar. 2024
Forty years ago, four men put on uniforms, came up with a catchy logo — a startled specter in a red circle with a slash going through it, no big whoop — strapped on some proton packs and saved New York City from an evil deity holed up in a penthouse.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 21 Mar. 2024
When the Broncos appeared as a 10 seed with a slash next to Colorado, indicating the play-in game Wednesday, there were gasps followed by eerie silence.
—Mark Zeigler, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 Mar. 2024
David Tepper Who doesn’t want to dress like a hedge fund billionaire slash Carolina Panthers owner?
—Katie Toussaint, Charlotte Observer, 31 Jan. 2024
Best Presidents' Day Sales: Beauty Starting strong with makeup products seeing price slashes ahead of Presidents' Day: Too Faced, MAC, and Freck.
—Sarah Han, Allure, 7 Feb. 2024
The Bottega Veneta Fall-Winter 2023 runway look was customized for the starlet with a chic midriff slash — continuing Zendaya’s growing trend of ab-framing outfits — and a full-length hemline.
—Leah Dolan, CNN, 9 Feb. 2024
Even before the industry was facing a potential deluge of second-hand rental cars, customers were blighted with product recalls and said they were ‘duped’ by overnight price slashes as rival brands fight to remain price competitive.
—Byeleanor Pringle, Fortune, 7 Feb. 2024
The slashes have continued into 2024, with cuts hitting workers at Amazon’s health division, Pfizer, and a slew of biotech companies, among others.
Nurses and doctors, your jobs are safe(r)
Layoffs have mostly hit managerial and administrative staffers rather than patient-facing roles.
—Laura Bratton, Quartz, 6 Feb. 2024
Verb
Starting with the best deal, this Dutch oven is currently slashed by 48 percent in a gorgeous light blue color.
—Isabel Garcia, Peoplemag, 14 Apr. 2024
The Biden administration has warned of a policy shift, and some Democrats have called to slash aid, if Israel doesn’t do more to limit the staggering civilian death toll and halt an emerging famine.
—Abigail Hauslohner, Washington Post, 13 Apr. 2024
Outbreaks of avian flu have also slashed foie gras production in recent years, jeopardizing the supply chain.
—Vivian Song, Robb Report, 12 Apr. 2024
Consumer advocates warn taxpayers to be cautious about hiring anyone who promises to be able to slash your tax debt, because many of those pitches are from scammers.
—Jon Healey, Los Angeles Times, 12 Apr. 2024
The layoffs are due to occur around June 9.
— Genentech, a biotech behemoth, is slashing 436 jobs in South San Francisco.
—George Avalos, The Mercury News, 11 Apr. 2024
Other than the preferential visas, sanctions on Russian air carriers and reciprocal bans on Western airlines have slashed the destinations where Russian nationals can escape their frigid winter, making already-popular Thailand an easier choice.
—TIME, 11 Apr. 2024
Ford got a big boost slashing prices, particularly on the Mach-E and, to a lesser degree, on the Lightning.
—Detroit Free Press, 3 Apr. 2024
Iger slashed about 7,000 jobs last year in an effort to cut costs.
—Andrew R. Chow, TIME, 3 Apr. 2024
Noun
The lid has been changed from the LED dot matrix of the past to a chic diagonal metallic slash.
—PCMAG, 27 Mar. 2024
Forty years ago, four men put on uniforms, came up with a catchy logo — a startled specter in a red circle with a slash going through it, no big whoop — strapped on some proton packs and saved New York City from an evil deity holed up in a penthouse.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 21 Mar. 2024
When the Broncos appeared as a 10 seed with a slash next to Colorado, indicating the play-in game Wednesday, there were gasps followed by eerie silence.
—Mark Zeigler, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 Mar. 2024
David Tepper Who doesn’t want to dress like a hedge fund billionaire slash Carolina Panthers owner?
—Katie Toussaint, Charlotte Observer, 31 Jan. 2024
Best Presidents' Day Sales: Beauty Starting strong with makeup products seeing price slashes ahead of Presidents' Day: Too Faced, MAC, and Freck.
—Sarah Han, Allure, 7 Feb. 2024
The Bottega Veneta Fall-Winter 2023 runway look was customized for the starlet with a chic midriff slash — continuing Zendaya’s growing trend of ab-framing outfits — and a full-length hemline.
—Leah Dolan, CNN, 9 Feb. 2024
Even before the industry was facing a potential deluge of second-hand rental cars, customers were blighted with product recalls and said they were ‘duped’ by overnight price slashes as rival brands fight to remain price competitive.
—Byeleanor Pringle, Fortune, 7 Feb. 2024
The slashes have continued into 2024, with cuts hitting workers at Amazon’s health division, Pfizer, and a slew of biotech companies, among others.
Nurses and doctors, your jobs are safe(r)
Layoffs have mostly hit managerial and administrative staffers rather than patient-facing roles.
—Laura Bratton, Quartz, 6 Feb. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'slash.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near slash
Cite this Entry
“Slash.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/slash. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
slash
2 of 2 noun1
: the act of slashing
also
: a long cut or stroke made by slashing
2
: an ornamental slit in a garment
3
: a mark / used to mean "or" (as in and/or), "and or" (as in bottles/cans), or "per" (as in kilometers/hour)
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