SLIPPERY
slippery, slippy
(adjective) causing or tending to cause things to slip or slide; “slippery sidewalks”; “a slippery bar of soap”; “the streets are still slippy from the rain”
slippery, tricky
(adjective) not to be trusted; “how extraordinarily slippery a liar the camera is”- James Agee
Source: WordNet® 3.1
Etymology
Adjective
slippery (comparative slipperier, superlative slipperiest)
Of a surface, having low friction, often due to being covered in a non-viscous liquid, and therefore hard to grip, hard to stand on without falling, etc.
(figuratively, by extension) Evasive; difficult to pin down.
(obsolete) Liable to slip; not standing firm.
Unstable; changeable; inconstant.
(obsolete) Wanton; unchaste; loose in morals.
Synonyms
• (of a surface): greasy, slick, slimy, slippy, wet
Antonyms
• (of a surface): sticky
Source: Wiktionary
Slip"per*y, a. Etym: [See Slipper, a.]
1. Having the quality opposite to adhesiveness; allowing or causing
anything to slip or move smoothly, rapidly, and easily upon the
surface; smooth; glib; as, oily substances render things slippery.
2. Not affording firm ground for confidence; as, a slippery promise.
The slippery tops of human state. Cowley.
3. Not easily held; liable or apt to slip away.
The slippery god will try to loose his hold. Dryden.
4. Liable to slip; not standing firm. Shak.
5. Unstable; changeable; mutable; uncertain; inconstant; fickle. "The
slippery state of kings." Denham.
6. Uncertain in effect. L'Estrange.
7. Wanton; unchaste; loose in morals. Shak. Slippery elm. (Bot.) (a)
An American tree (Ulmus fulva) with a mucilagenous and slightly
aromatic inner bark which is sometimes used medicinally; also, the
inner bark itself. (b) A malvaceous shrub (Fremontia Californica); --
so called on the Pacific coast.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition