- (v.t.) To cause to become less intense; to mitigate; to abate; to ease.
- (a.) To be remiss or backward; to be negligent.
- (a.) To languish; to fail; to flag.
- (a.) To lose rapidity; to become more slow; as, a current of water slackens.
- (v.t.) To render slack; to make less tense or firm; as, to slack a rope; to slacken a bandage.
- (n.) A spongy, semivitrifled substance which miners or smelters mix with the ores of metals to prevent their fusion.
- (v.t.) To cause to become less eager; to repress; to make slow or less rapid; to retard; as, to slacken pursuit; to slacken industry.
- (v.t.) To deprive of cohesion by combining chemically with water; to slake; as, to slack lime.
- (a.) To end; to cease; to desist; to slake.
- (a.) To lose cohesion or solidity by a chemical combination with water; to slake; as, lime slacks.
- (a.) To abate; to become less violent.
- (a.) To become slack; to be made less tense, firm or rigid; to decrease in tension; as, a wet cord slackens in dry weather.
- (v.t.) To neglect; to be remiss in.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
| APA | Webster's. (2011). slacken. Retrieved September 24, 2026, from http://smartdefine.org/slacken/definitions/2062731 |
| Chicago | Webster's. 2011. "slacken" http://smartdefine.org/slacken/definitions/2062731 (accessed September 24, 2026). |
| Harvard | Webster's 2011, slacken, Smart Define, viewed 24 September, 2026, <http://smartdefine.org/slacken/definitions/2062731>. |
| MLA | Webster's. "slacken" 28 May 2011. Web. 24 September 2026. <http://smartdefine.org/slacken/definitions/2062731> |