slip

Etymology 1

Middle English, probably from Middle Low German slippen. Possibly ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *slewbʰ- (“slip, slide”), or related to Proto-Germanic *slībaną (“to split”). Cognate to Dutch slippen, German schlüpfen.

verb

1. (intransitive) To lose one’s traction on a slippery surface; to slide due to a lack of friction.
   … but in the damp conditions prevailing the driver sensibly was unwilling to attempt the climb up through Combe Down tunnel without help, for fear of slipping to a standstill in the unventilated bore, […] 1960 March, “Motive Power Miscellany: Western Region”, in Trains Illustrated, page 184
   Fernando Amorebieta seemed to have checked him, but a stepover created a fraction of room that became significant as the defender slipped, giving Falcao just enough space to curl a superb finish into the top corner. May 9, 2012, Jonathan Wilson, “Europa League: Radamel Falcao’s Atlético Madrid rout Athletic Bilbao”, in the Guardian
2. (intransitive) To err.
3. (intransitive) To accidentally reveal a secret or otherwise say something unintentionally.
4. (intransitive) To move or fly (out of place); to shoot; often with out, off, etc.
   A bone may slip out of place.
5. (transitive) To pass (a note, money, etc.), often covertly.
   She thanked the porter and slipped a ten-dollar bill into his hand.
6. (transitive) To cause to move smoothly and quickly; to slide; to convey gently or secretly.
7. (intransitive) To move quickly and often secretively; to depart, withdraw, enter, appear, intrude, or escape as if by sliding.
   Some errors slipped into the appendix.
8. (intransitive, figurative) To move down; to slide.
   Profits have slipped over the past six months.
   The Cottagers had previously gone eight games without a win and had slipped into the relegation zone over Christmas, with boss Hughes criticised by fans after their 3-1 home defeat by fellow basement battlers West Ham on Boxing Day. 28 December 2010, Marc Vesty, “Stoke 0 – 2 Fulham”, in BBC Sport
9. (transitive, hunting, falconry) To release (a dog, a bird of prey, etc.) to go after a quarry.
10. (intransitive, aviation, of an aircraft) Clipping of sideslip: To fly with the longitudinal axis misaligned with the relative wind.
11. (transitive, cooking) To remove the skin of a soft fruit, such as a tomato or peach, by blanching briefly in boiling water, then transferring to cold water so that the skin peels, or slips, off easily.
12. (obsolete) To omit; to lose by negligence.
13. (transitive) To cut slips from; to cut; to take off; to make a slip or slips of.
    to slip a piece of cloth or paper
14. (transitive) To cause to slip or slide off, or out of place.
    A horse slips his bridle; a dog slips his collar.
15. To bring forth (young) prematurely; to slink.
16. (transitive, business) To cause (a schedule or release, etc.) to go, or let it go, beyond the allotted deadline.
    We have been consistently slipping the product release schedules. 2005, Raj Karamchedu, It's Not About the Technology
    If you are going to slip the schedule, make it a big slip and make it early in your endgame effort so that your stakeholders can respond and adjust around you. 2013, Robert Galen, Software Endgames
    As for trains, the contract was due to be awarded last year, but Rayner confirms that this has slipped and will now be awarded next year. July 1 2020, Chris Rayner tells Richard Clinnick, “High Speed 2 is speeding up …”, in Rail, page 65

noun

1. An act or instance of slipping.
   I had a slip on the ice and bruised my hip.
2. A woman's undergarment worn under a skirt or dress to conceal unwanted nudity that may otherwise be revealed by the skirt or dress itself; a shift.
3. A slipdress.
4. A mistake or error.
   a slip of the tongue
   In quoting this passage I have taken the liberty to correct a grammatical slip. 1906, James George Frazer, Attis, Otis, Osiris, volume 1, page 295
5. (nautical) A berth; a space for a ship to moor.
6. (nautical) A difference between the theoretical distance traveled per revolution of the propeller and the actual advance of the vessel.
7. (nautical) A slipway.
8. (medicine) A one-time return to previous maladaptive behaviour after cure.
9. (cricket) Any of several fielding positions to the off side of the wicket keeper, designed to catch the ball after being deflected from the bat; a fielder in that position (See first slip, second slip, third slip, fourth slip and fifth slip.)
10. A number between 0 and 1 that is the difference between the angular speed of a rotating magnetic field and the angular speed of its rotor, divided by the angular speed of the magnetic field.
11. A leash or string by which a dog is held; so called from its being made in such a manner as to slip, or become loose, by relaxation of the hand.
    We stalked over the extensive plains with Killbuck and Lena in the slips, in search of deer. 1852, Samuel Baker, The Rifle and the Hound in Ceylon
12. An escape; a secret or unexpected desertion.
    He gave the warden the slip and escaped from the prison.
13. (aviation) Clipping of sideslip.
14. (printing, dated) A portion of the columns of a newspaper etc. struck off by itself; a proof from a column of type when set up and in the galley.
15. (dated) A child's pinafore.
16. An outside covering or case.
    a pillow slip
    the slip or sheath of a sword
17. (obsolete) A counterfeit piece of money, made from brass covered with silver.
18. Matter found in troughs of grindstones after the grinding of edge tools.
    the Grindstone, commonly called Slipp, is used to the same purpose in dying of Silks. 1667, William Petty, An apparatus to the history of the common practices of dying
19. A particular quantity of yarn.
20. (UK, dated) A narrow passage between buildings.
21. Either side of the gallery in a theater.
    The gallery contains nine rows of seats, besides those in the slips. 1826, Edward Wedlake Brayley, Historical and Descriptive Accounts of the Theatres of London, page 65
22. (US) A long seat or narrow pew in churches, often without a door.
23. (mining) A dislocation of a lead, destroying continuity.
24. (engineering) The motion of the centre of resistance of the float of a paddle wheel, or the blade of an oar, through the water horizontally, or the difference between a vessel's actual speed and the speed it would have if the propelling instrument acted upon a solid; also, the velocity, relatively to still water, of the backward current of water produced by the propeller.
25. (electrical) The difference between the actual and synchronous speeds of an induction motor.
26. (telecommunications) The positional displacement in a sequence of transmitted symbols that causes the loss or insertion of one or more symbols.
27. A fish, the sole.

Etymology 2

Probably from Middle Dutch slippe or Middle Low German slippe, probably ultimately related to Proto-West Germanic *slīban (“to split”).

noun

1. A twig or shoot; a cutting.
   a slip from a vine
2. (obsolete) A descendant, a scion.
3. A young person (now usually with of introducing descriptive qualifier).
   She couldn't hurt a fly, young slip of a girl that she is.
4. A long, thin piece of something.
5. A small piece of paper, especially one longer than it is wide, typically a form for writing on or one giving printed information.
   a salary slip
6. (marine insurance) A memorandum of the particulars of a risk for which a policy is to be executed. It usually bears the broker's name and is initiated by the underwriters.

Etymology 3

From Middle English slyp, slep, slyppe, from Old English slyp, slyppe, slipa (“a viscous, slimy substance”), of uncertain origin. Perhaps from Proto-West Germanic *sleupan, from Proto-Germanic *sleupaną (“to slip, sneak”), possibly connected with Proto-Indo-European *slewb-, *slewbʰ- (“slip, slide”), from Proto-Indo-European *sel- (“to sneak, crawl”); or alternatively from Proto-Germanic *slippijaną (“to glide”), from Proto-Indo-European *sleyb- (“slimy; to glide”). Compare Old English slūpan (“to slip, glide”), Old English cūslyppe, cūsloppe (“cowslip”).

noun

1. (ceramics) A thin, slippery mix of clay and water.
2. (obsolete) Mud, slime.