slip
verb/slɪp/
/slɪp/
Verb Forms
Idioms Phrasal Verbs| present simple I / you / we / they slip | /slɪp/ /slɪp/ |
| he / she / it slips | /slɪps/ /slɪps/ |
| past simple slipped | /slɪpt/ /slɪpt/ |
| past participle slipped | /slɪpt/ /slɪpt/ |
| -ing form slipping | /ˈslɪpɪŋ/ /ˈslɪpɪŋ/ |
- [intransitive] to slide a short distance by accident so that you fall or nearly fall
- She slipped and landed flat on her back.
- As I ran up the stairs, my foot slipped and I fell.
- She got on her feet and ran towards the door, slipping and sliding.
- slip on something He slipped on a bar of soap in the shower room.
- slip over She slipped over on the ice and broke her leg.
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- [intransitive] to slide out of position or out of your hand
- My hand slipped as I was slicing the bread and I cut myself.
- + adv./prep. His hat had slipped over one eye.
- The fish slipped out of my hand.
- The child slipped from his grasp and ran off.
- (figurative) She was careful not to let her control slip.
- [intransitive] + adv./prep. to go somewhere quickly and quietly, especially without being noticed synonym creep
- She slipped out of the house before the others were awake.
- I slipped away before the end of the performance.
- The ship slipped into the harbour at night.
- A guard was posted at the door, in case anyone tried to slip in.
- (figurative) She knew that time was slipping away.
- [transitive] to put something somewhere quickly, quietly or secretly
- slip something + adv./prep. Anna slipped her hand into his.
- He slipped the letter back into its envelope.
- He beat three defenders before slipping the ball past the goalkeeper.
- She slipped her head around the door.
- I managed to slip a few jokes into my speech.
- I managed to slip in a few jokes.
- I slipped the ring onto my finger.
- slip something to somebody They'd slipped some money to the guards.
- slip somebody something They'd slipped the guards some money.
- [intransitive] to fall to a lower level; to become worse
- Standards have slipped in the last few years.
- His popularity has slipped recently.
- The director never lets the tension slip.
- That's three times she's beaten me—I must be slipping!
- A defeat would see them slip down the rankings.
- At that time the Conservatives were slipping in the polls.
- slip from something to something Pre-tax profits slipped from $3.9 million to $3.7 million,.
- [intransitive] + adv./prep. to pass into a particular state or situation, especially a difficult or unpleasant one
- He began to slip into debt.
- The patient had slipped into a coma.
- We seem to have slipped behind schedule.
- [intransitive, transitive] to put clothes on or to take them off quickly and easily
- + adv./prep. to slip into/out of a dress
- slip something + adv./prep. to slip your shoes on/off
- He slipped a coat over his sweatshirt.
- [transitive, intransitive] to get free; to make something/somebody/yourself free from something
- slip something The ship had slipped its moorings in the night.
- The dog slipped its collar.
- slip (something) + adj. The animal had slipped free and escaped.
slide/fall
out of position
go/put quickly
become worse
into difficult situation
clothes on/off
get free
Word Originverb Middle English (in the sense ‘move quickly and softly’): probably from Middle Low German slippen (verb); compare with slippery.
Idioms
See slip in the Oxford Advanced American DictionarySee slip in the Oxford Learner's Dictionary of Academic Englishlet slip something
- to give somebody information that is supposed to be secret
- I happened to let it slip that he had given me £1 000 for the car.
- She tried not to let slip what she knew.
let something slip (through your fingers)
- to miss or fail to use an opportunity
- Don't let the chance to work abroad slip through your fingers.
(slip/be thrown) out of gear
- (of emotions or situations) (to become) out of control
- She said nothing in case her temper slipped out of gear.
roll/slip/trip off the tongue
- to be easy to say or pronounce
- It's not a name that exactly trips off the tongue, is it?
slip your mind
- if something slips your mind, you forget it or forget to do it
- I’m sorry I didn’t tell you. It completely slipped my mind.
slip/roll/trip off the tongue
- to be easy to say or pronounce
- It's not a name that exactly slips off the tongue, is it?
slip one over on somebody
- (informal) to trick somebody
slip through the net
(also fall/slip through the cracks)
- when somebody/something slips through the net, an organization or a system fails to find them and deal with them
- We tried to contact all former students, but one or two slipped through the net.
Check pronunciation:
slip