Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner's English Dictionary - slow

(slower, slowest, slows, slowing, slowed) Frequency: The word is one of the 1500 most common words in English. 1. Something that is slow moves, happens, or is done without much speed. The traffic is heavy and slow... Electric whisks should be used on a slow speed. ...slow, regular breathing. ? fast ADJ • slowly He spoke slowly and deliberately... Christian backed slowly away. ADV: ADV with v • slowness She lowered the glass with calculated slowness. N-UNCOUNT 2. In informal English, slower is used to mean ‘at a slower speed’ and slowest is used to mean ‘at the slowest speed’. In non-standard English, slow is used to mean ‘with little speed’. I began to walk slower and slower... We got there by driving slow all the way. ? fast ADV: ADV after v 3. Something that is slow takes a long time. The distribution of passports has been a slow process. ? quick ADJ • slowly My resentment of her slowly began to fade. ADV: ADV with v • slowness ...the slowness of political and economic progress. N-UNCOUNT 4. If someone is slow to do something, they do it after a delay. The world community has been slow to respond to the crisis... ? quick ADJ: v-link ADJ, usu ADJ to-inf, ADJ in -ing 5. If something slows or if you slow it, it starts to move or happen more slowly. The rate of bombing has slowed considerably... She slowed the car and began driving up a narrow road... VERB: V, V n 6. Someone who is slow is not very clever and takes a long time to understand things. He got hit on the head and he’s been a bit slow since. ? quick ADJ 7. If you describe a situation, place, or activity as slow, you mean that it is not very exciting. The island is too slow for her liking. = quiet ? lively ADJ 8. If a clock or watch is slow, it shows a time that is earlier than the correct time. ? fast ADJ: usu v-link ADJ 9. see also slow- 10. slow off the mark: see mark slowly but surely: see surely slow on the uptake: see uptake