SLOUGHING

shedding, sloughing

(noun) the process whereby something is shed

Source: WordNet® 3.1


Verb

sloughing

present participle of slough

Noun

sloughing (plural sloughings)

Something sloughed off.

(zoology) The act of casting off the skin or shell; ecdysis.

Source: Wiktionary


Slough"ing, n. (Zoöl.)

Definition: The act of casting off the skin or shell, as do insects and crustaceans; ecdysis.

SLOUGH

Slough, a.

Definition: Slow. [Obs.] Chaucer.

Slough, n. Etym: [OE. slogh, slough, AS. sloh a hollow place; cf. MHG. sluch an abyss, gullet, G. schlucken to swallow; also Gael. & Ir. sloc a pit, pool. ditch, Ir. slug to swallow. Gr.

1. A place of deep mud or mire; a hole full of mire. Chaucer. He's here stuck in a slough. Milton.

2. [Pronounced sloo.]

Definition: A wet place; a swale; a side channel or inlet from a river.

Note: [In this sense local or provincial; also spelt sloo, and slue.] Slough grass (Bot.), a name in the Mississippi valley for grasses of the genus Muhlenbergia; -- called also drop seed, and nimble Will.

Slough, obs.

Definition: imp. of Slee, to slay. Slew. Chaucer.

Slough, n. Etym: [OE. slugh, slouh; cf. MHG. sl the skin of a serpent, G. schlauch a skin, a leather bag or bottle.]

1. The skin, commonly the cast-off skin, of a serpent or of some similar animal.

2. (Med.)

Definition: The dead mass separating from a foul sore; the dead part which separates from the living tissue in mortification.

Slough, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Sloughed; p. pr. & vb. n. Sloughing.] (Med.)

Definition: To form a slough; to separate in the form of dead matter from the living tissues; -- often used with off, or away; as, a sloughing ulcer; the dead tissues slough off slowly.

Slough, v. t.

Definition: To cast off; to discard as refuse. New tint the plumage of the birds, And slough decay from grazing herds. Emerson.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition



RESET




Word of the Day

11 May 2025

MALLET

(noun) a light drumstick with a rounded head that is used to strike such percussion instruments as chimes, kettledrums, marimbas, glockenspiels, etc.


coffee icon

Coffee Trivia

Raw coffee beans, soaked in water and spices, are chewed like candy in many parts of Africa.

coffee icon