slag
slag Lexical Profile
slag Game Scores & Validity
• noun
Stony, glassy waste matter separated from metals during the smelting or refining of ore.
"Huge heaps of dark slag surrounded the old nineteenth-century ironworks."
British A contemptible or promiscuous person, especially a woman (used as a derogatory slang term).
"The television drama was criticized by viewers for its frequent use of derogatory terms like slag."
Rough, porous volcanic rock or pyroclastic fragments resembling the waste produced in metal smelting.
"Geologists examined the dark volcanic slag scattered across the slopes of the crater."
• verb
British To criticize, insult, or speak abusively about someone (often used with 'off').
"The lead singer used the interview to slag his former bandmates."
To form or convert into stony waste matter during the smelting or heating of metal.
"Impurities in the iron ore will slag at high temperatures and float to the top of the molten metal."
Word Nuance & Usage
While 'slag' is a neutral technical term in metallurgy and geology, its British slang sense referring to a woman is strongly derogatory and offensive, whereas the verb 'slag' (often 'slag off') is informal British slang for criticizing someone.
• Rhymes for slag
Word Origin & Etymology
Borrowed in the 16th century from Middle Low German 'slagge', referring to the splinters or waste struck off hot metal during forging, related to 'slagen' (to strike).
Usage Trend
Historical frequency of usage in published text.