slow

Formsslower, slowest

Formsslows, slowing, slowed

Formsslower, slowest

Pluralslows

1. 1
   lacking speedadjective

   Moving, acting, or happening at a low speed, so that something takes a comparatively long time.

   Traffic was slow on the bridge during the evening rush.

   The slower runners finished nearly an hour after the winner.

   UsageThe usual adverb is slowly: a slow walk, but walk slowly.

   Similarsluggish, unhurried, leisurely, plodding, gradual

   Oppositefast, quick, rapid, speedy

   Note

   Speed here belongs to anything that moves or works, from a train to a computer. Melville, in The Encantadas (1854), stretches it to speech: Spanish spoken "mild and slowest". Source

   Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 2 facts

   • Herman Melville wrote The Encantadas, first published in 1854. en.wikipedia.org
   • The narrator describes Hunilla speaking Spanish as “mild and slowest”. gutenberg.org
2. 2
   reduce speedverbtransitive or intransitive

   To reduce speed or become slower, or to make someone or something move, run, or proceed less quickly.

   The pilot slowed the plane for its final descent.

   Many DJs slow a track slightly so its tempo matches the next song.

   UsageOften slow down or slow up: slow the car down.

   Similardecelerate, brake, slacken

   Oppositeaccelerate, quicken, hasten

3. 3
   at a crawladverb

   At a low speed or pace; in an unhurried manner; slowly.

   The sign warned drivers to go slow through the work zone.

   She cooked the brisket low and slow for twelve hours.

   UsageIt follows the verb: go slow, drive slow, nice and slow. Formal writing usually prefers slowly.

   Similarunhurriedly

   Oppositefast, quickly

   Note

   The adverb without -ly is old as well as casual. Shakespeare's Lucrece (1594) asks for time to mark "how slow time goes / In time of sorrow", and today the same form turns up on "go slow" road signs and in "low and slow" cooking.

4. 4
   little going onadjective

   Lacking activity or business; marked by few customers, events, or developments.

   Sales are always slow in the weeks after the holidays.

   The emergency room had a slow night, with only a handful of patients.

   UsageOften a slow day, a slow night, or business is slow.

   Similarquiet, slack, sluggish, dead

   Oppositebusy, brisk, hectic

   Note

   Time itself can be slow when little fills it: a slow afternoon, a slow night, and above all the slow news day, when editors have space to fill and little to fill it with. The word describes the period, not anyone in it. A slow day at the shop says nothing about how fast the shopkeeper works.

5. 5
   not hastyadjective

   Not hasty or inclined to hurry; acting with deliberation or caution rather than rushing.

   The judge was famously slow to issue rulings, preferring to weigh every argument.

   Investors who are slow to panic often weather downturns better than those who rush to sell.

   UsageUsually slow to do something, as in slow to panic; less often slow about something.

   Similarreluctant, hesitant, cautious, unhurried

   Oppositequick, hasty, prompt, swift

   Note

   The King James Bible of 1611 sets the pattern with "slow to wrath", and Kaufman and Caine's Prayer, Faith, and Healing (1999) uses the variant slow about getting deeply involved. Unlike the 'not quick-witted' meaning, being slow in this way is often praise, because the delay is chosen. Source

   Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 3 facts

   • The King James Bible was first published in 1611. en.wikipedia.org
   • The King James Bible contains the wording “slow to wrath”. en.wikisource.org
   • Prayer, Faith, and Healing is by Kaufman and Caine and was published in 1999. books.google.com
6. 6
   dulladjective

   Deficient in spirit, liveliness, or briskness; lacking energy or animation.

   The seminar turned slow after lunch, with half the audience nodding off.

   Critics panned the play's second act as slow and lifeless.

   Similardull, boring, sluggish, tedious, plodding

   Oppositelively, brisk, exciting, energetic

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