move along a smooth surface while maintaining continuous contact with it:she slid down the bank into the water (as adjective sliding)the tank should have a sliding glass cover
[with object] move (something) along a surface while maintaining continuous contact with it:she slid the keys over the table
move smoothly, quickly, or unobtrusively: [no object]:I quickly slid into a seat at the back of the hall [with object]:she slid the bottle into her pocket
change gradually to a worse condition or lower level:the country faces the prospect of sliding from recession into slump
noun
1a structure with a smooth sloping surface for children to slide down.
a smooth stretch or slope of ice or packed snow for sledding on.
an act of moving along a smooth surface while maintaining continuous contact with it:use an ice ax to halt a slide on ice and snow
Baseball a sliding approach to a base along the ground.
a decline in value or quality:the current slide in house prices
2a part of a machine or musical instrument that slides.
the place on a machine or instrument where a sliding part operates.
slide guitar:I’d been playing slide for years
3 (also microscope slide) a rectangular piece of glass on which an object is mounted or placed for examination under a microscope.
a mounted transparency, typically one placed in a projector for viewing on a screen: [as modifier]:a slide show
4a sandal or light shoe without a back.
Phrases
let something slide
negligently allow something to deteriorate:Papa had let the business slide after Mama’s death
Derivatives
slidable
adjective
Origin:
Old Englishslīdan (verb); related to sled and sledge1. The noun, first in the sense 'act of sliding', is recorded from the late 16th century
