Emily Dickinson Lexicon

SLUR, v.t. [D. slordig, sluttish.]

1. To soil; to sully; to contaminate; to disgrace.
2. To pass lightly; to conceal. With periods, points and tropes he slurs his crimes. – Dryden.
3. To cheat; to trick. [Unusual.] – Prior.
4. In music, to sing or perform in a smooth gliding style. – Busby.

SLUR'RED, pp.

1. Contaminated; soiled.
2. adj. See the noun, No. 2.

SLUSE, n.

A more correct orthography of Sluice.

SLUSH, or SLOSH, n.

Soft mud, grease, or a soft mixture of filthy substances. Also in some places, a mixture of snow and water; snow broth.

SLUSH'Y, a.

Consisting of soft mud, or of snow and water.

SLUT, n. [D. slet, a slut, a rag; G. schlotterig, negligent, slovenly; schlottern, to hang loosely, to wabble or waddle.]

1. A woman who is negligent of cleanliness, and who suffers her person, clothes, furniture, &c., to be dirty or in disorder. – Shak. King.
2. A name of slight contempt for a woman. – L'Estrange.

SLUT'TER-Y, n.

The qualities of a slut; more generally, the practice of a slut; neglect of cleanliness and order; dirtiness of clothes, rooms, furniture or provisions. – Drayton.

SLUT'TISH, a.

1. Not neat or cleanly; dirty; careless of dress and neatness; disorderly; as, a sluttish woman.
2. Disorderly; dirty; as, a sluttish dress.
3. Meretricious. [Little used.] – Holiday.

SLUT'TISH-LY, adv.

In a sluttish manner; negligently; dirtily.

SLU'T'TISH-NESS, n.

The qualities or practice of a slut; negligence of dress; dirtiness of dress, furniture, and in domestic affairs generally. – Sidney. Ray.

SLY, a. [G. schlau; Dan. slue. Qu. D. sluik, underhand, privately; sluiken, to smuggle; which seem to be allied to sleek and sleight.]

1. Artfully dextrous in performing things secretly, and escaping observation or detection; usually implying some degree of meanness; artfully cunning; applied to persons; as, a sly man or boy.
2. Done with artful and dextrous secrecy; as, a sly trick.
3. Marked with artful secrecy; as, sly circumspection. – Milton.
4. Secret; concealed. Envy works in a sty imperceptible manner. – Watts.

SLY'-BOOTS, n.

A sly, cunning or waggish person. [Low.]

SLY'LY, or SLY'NESS, adv. [or n. See SLILY, SLINESS.]

SMACK, n.

1. A loud kiss. – Shak.
2. A quick sharp noise, as of the lips or of a whip.
3. Taste; savor; tincture. Spenser. – Carew.
4. Pleasing taste. – Tusser.
5. A quick smart blow.
6. A small quantity; a taste. – Dryden.
7. [D. smakschip. Lye supposes it to be the Sax. snacca, from snaca, snake, and so named from its form. Qu.] A small vessel, commonly rigged us a cutter, used in the coasting and fishing trade. – Mar. Dict.

SMACK, v.i. [W. ysmac, a stroke; Sax. smæccan, to taste; D. smaaken; G. schmecken, schmatzen; Sw. smaka; Dan. smager; D. smak, a cast or throw. The primary sense is to throw, to strike, whence to touch or taste; Gr. μαχη, a battle; as, battle from beat.]

1. To kiss with a close compression of the lips, so as to make a sound when they separate; to kiss with violence. – Pope.
2. To make a noise by the separation of the lips after tasting any thing. – Gay.
3. To have a taste; to be tinctured with any particular taste.
4. To have a tincture or quality infused. All sects, all ages smack of this vice. – Shak.

SMACK, v.t.

1. To kiss with a sharp noise. – Donne.
2. To make a sharp noise with the lips.
3. To make a sharp noise by striking; to crack; as, to smack a whip.

SMACK'ING, ppr.

Kissing with a sharp noise; making a sharp noise with the lips or by striking.

SMALL, a. [Sax. smæl, smal, thin, slender, little; G. schmal, D. smal, narrow; Dan. smal, narrow, strait; smaler, to narrow, to diminish; Sw. smal; Russ. malo, small, little, few; malyu and umaliayu, to diminish; Slav. to abase; W. mal, small, trivial, light, vain, like, similar; malu, to grind, and malau, to make similar; Gr. ὁμαλος. See Mill, Mold, Meal.]

1. Slender; thin; fine; of little diameter; hence in general, little in size or quantity; not great; as, a small house; a small horse; a small farm; a small body; small particles.
2. Minute; slender; fine; as, a small voice.
3. Little in degree; as, small improvement; small acquirements; the trouble is small. There arose no small stir about that way. – Acts ix.
4. Being of little moment, weight or importance; as, it is a small matter or thing; a small subject.
5. Of little genius or ability; petty; as, a small poet or musician. 6, Short; containing little; as, a small essay.
6. Little in amount; as, a small sum; a small price.
7. Containing little of the principal quality, or little strength; weak; as, small beer.
8. Gentle; soft; not loud. – 1 Kings xix.
9. Mean; base; unworthy. [Colloquial.]

SMALL, n.

The small or slender part of a thing; as, the small of the leg or of the back. – Sidney.

SMALL, v.t.

To make little or less. [Not in use.]

SMALL'AGE, n.

A plant of the genus Apium, commonly called celery. – Lee.

SMALL'-ARMS, n. [plur.]

A general name of muskets, carbines and rifles.

SMALL'-BEER, n. [small and beer.]

A species of weak beer.

SMALL'-COAL, n. [small and coal.]

Little wood coals used to light fires. – Gay.

SMALL'-CRAFT, n. [small and craft.]

A vessel, or vessels in general, of a small size, or below the size of ships and brigs intended for foreign trade.