slippery
gb/slˈɪpɚi/ us/slˈɪpɚi/
A2
Inglés
~ 8700
Acepciones
0 acepciones
adjective
A2
property
1
smooth, easy to slide on
Hard to stand on, walk on, or hold because it is very smooth or wet and things slide on it easily.
Patrón de uso:
[something] is slippery
Error frecuente:
Learners sometimes confuse 'slippery' with 'slippy'. 'Slippy' is used in some dialects, but 'slippery' is the standard form in written and formal English. Learners may also forget to mention the cause: say 'The floor is slippery because it is wet', not just 'The floor is slippery' when explaining.
Sinónimos
slick (Often used for very smooth or wet surfaces, especially roads or hair; slightly more informal.)
|
slimy (Emphasizes a wet, often unpleasantly sticky or gooey surface, like mud or algae.)
Antónimos
rough (A surface with a lot of friction, making it easy to stand on or hold.)
|
grippy (Informal; emphasizes that something provides good traction and does not slip.)
Colocaciones
slippery road
|slippery floor
|slippery surface
|slippery steps
|slippery ice
|slippery pavement
Temas
daily life
|safety
|weather
|daily_life
|health
Ejemplos
- Be careful, the kitchen floor is really slippery after I mopped it.
- The path down to the river was wet and slippery after the rain.
- Winter tires help you drive more safely on slippery roads.
- He lost his balance on the slippery steps and grabbed the rail.
- The fish was so slippery that it slid right out of my hands.
Ejemplos para estudiantes
- The bathroom floor is slippery when it is wet.
- I fell on the slippery ice outside my house.
- These shoes are not good for slippery roads.
- The rocks near the water are very slippery.
- Hold the glass tight; it is a little slippery.
adjective
B1
property
2
untrustworthy and hard to pin down
About a person who is not very honest and is hard to catch, trust, or get a clear answer from.
Patrón de uso:
[someone] is a slippery [person/type]
Error frecuente:
Learners sometimes mix this meaning with the physical one and say things like 'He is slippery because he drinks a lot of water.' For people, 'slippery' usually means dishonest or evasive, not physically wet or smooth.
Sinónimos
shifty (Suggests someone looks dishonest or as if they are hiding something; informal and often negative.)
|
untrustworthy (More formal and direct; clearly states that the person cannot be trusted.)
Antónimos
trustworthy (Emphasizes that a person can be trusted to be honest and reliable.)
|
straightforward (Suggests someone is open and honest and does not try to hide things or avoid questions.)
Colocaciones
slippery character
|slippery customer
|slippery politician
|slippery lawyer
|slippery type
Temas
personality
|trust
|relationships
|communication
Ejemplos
- He's a slippery character, so get everything in writing before you agree to anything.
- The company has a slippery reputation when it comes to paying its contractors on time.
- Voters complained that the candidate seemed slippery and never gave a clear answer to tough questions.
- Be careful with that landlord; people say he's pretty slippery about returning deposits.
- She tried to pin him down on the dates, but he was too slippery to commit to anything.
Ejemplos para estudiantes
- I don't trust him; he seems very slippery.
- The salesman was friendly but a bit slippery.
- People say that lawyer is a slippery person.
- The boss is slippery and never gives a clear yes or no.
- Be careful; he is a slippery guy with money.
adjective
B2
property
3
hard to define or control
About an idea, topic, or situation that is not clear and is hard to explain, define, or control.
Patrón de uso:
[something abstract] is a slippery [idea/topic/issue]
Error frecuente:
Learners may try to use 'slippery' with every difficult subject, but it is usually used when the idea is unclear or keeps changing, not just when it is hard. For a subject that is simply hard, 'difficult' or 'complex' is more natural.
Sinónimos
elusive (Emphasizes that something is hard to understand, define, or catch in your mind.)
|
vague (Focuses more on lack of clear detail or precision.)
Antónimos
clear-cut (Describes something that is very clearly defined and easy to understand or decide.)
|
straightforward (Emphasizes that something is simple, clear, and easy to deal with.)
Colocaciones
slippery concept
|slippery topic
|slippery term
|slippery issue
|slippery question
Temas
knowledge
|thinking
|communication
|core_vocabulary
Ejemplos
- The idea of freedom is a slippery concept that means different things to different people.
- Truth can be a slippery thing when everyone has their own version of events.
- Legally, the definition of privacy is becoming increasingly slippery in the digital age.
- It's a slippery issue, because any decision will upset someone.
- Happiness is a slippery topic for scientists to measure and study.
Ejemplos para estudiantes
- The word 'culture' is a slippery concept.
- For many students, time management is a slippery idea to understand and use.
- The meaning of the law is slippery in this case.
- Success can be a slippery topic to talk about.
- The truth is sometimes slippery and hard to see.
Gramática
Forma de diccionario
slippery
AFI
GB/slˈɪpɚi/
US/slˈɪpɚi/
Sílabas y acento
slip - pery (2 sílabas)
Stress on 1st syllable (slip)
Formas de la palabra
Adjective
- Base: slippery
Familia de palabras
Core family
slip
verb A2
Related words
slipper
noun
Negative and opposite forms
non-slip
adjective
Advanced or less common
slipperiness
noun
slippage
noun
Expresiones
a slippery customer
1/ə slˈɪpɚi kˈʌstəmɚ/
idiom
informal
person hard to deal with or trust
A person who is difficult to deal with or trust, often because they avoid paying, answering, or taking responsibility.
Ejemplos
- Watch him; he's a slippery customer when it comes to paying his bills.
- The police had been trying to catch this slippery customer for years.
- She's a slippery customer in negotiations and never gives more than she has to.
a slippery slope
1/ə slˈɪpɚi slˈoʊp/
idiom
process leading to worse and worse results
A situation where doing one thing will make other bad things more likely to happen, step by step, and it becomes hard to stop.
Ejemplos
- Allowing one exception like this could be a slippery slope that leads to many more.
- Some people argue that censoring any books is a slippery slope toward limiting free speech.
- He warned that working late just once might be a slippery slope to always staying at the office.
slippery as an eel
1/slˈɪpɚi ˈæz ən ˈil/
idiom
informal
extremely hard to catch or hold
Very hard to catch, hold, or control, either physically or because the person avoids being caught or answering clearly.
Ejemplos
- The suspect proved to be as slippery as an eel and kept changing his story.
- The little boy was slippery as an eel and ran away every time his mother tried to grab him.
- In debates, she can be slippery as an eel, never giving a straight answer.
slippery when wet
1/slˈɪpɚi wˈɛn wˈɛt/
fixed phrase
warning that wet surface is dangerous
Words on a sign that warn people that a floor or road becomes easy to slip on when it is wet.
Ejemplos
- The sign said 'Slippery When Wet', so we walked very carefully through the hallway.
- Roads marked 'Slippery When Wet' can be especially dangerous during heavy rain.
- They put up a 'Slippery When Wet' sign next to the swimming pool.