Definition

1. Noun:

   • A minor error or mistake: A small, often careless mistake in speech, writing, or action.
   • An act of sliding unintentionally: A sudden, accidental loss of footing or balance.
   • A small piece of paper: A thin, often rectangular piece of paper, such as a receipt or form.
   • A woman's undergarment: A sleeveless, lightweight piece of clothing worn under a dress.
   • A young, slender person: A person, especially a young one, who is thin and slight in build.
   • A cutting from a plant: A small shoot or twig cut from a plant for grafting or propagation.

2. Verb:

   • To slide unintentionally: To lose one's footing or balance on a smooth surface.
   • To move smoothly and quietly: To go or pass somewhere quickly, easily, or without being noticed.
   • To make a minor mistake: To err slightly or inadvertently.
   • To pass or decline gradually: To move into a worse state or condition.
   • To put or pass something discreetly: To give, insert, or place something quickly and often secretly.

Usage Examples

• Noun:

  • He made a slip in his calculations. (He made a minor error in his calculations.)
  • She had a nasty slip on the icy sidewalk. (She had a bad fall on the icy sidewalk.)
  • Please fill out this deposit slip. (Please complete this small paper form for a deposit.)
  • The slip of a girl stood quietly in the corner. (The slender young girl stood quietly in the corner.)

• Verb:

  • Be careful not to slip on the wet floor. (Be careful not to slide and fall on the wet floor.)
  • The thief slipped out the back door. (The thief moved quietly out the back door.)
  • I'm sorry, I slipped and called you by the wrong name. (I'm sorry, I made a mistake and used the wrong name.)
  • His performance has slipped this semester. (His performance has declined this semester.)
  • He slipped me a note during the meeting. (He passed me a note discreetly during the meeting.)

Advanced Usage

• "To let (something) slip": To reveal information accidentally.

  • He let slip the secret during the conversation. (He accidentally revealed the secret during the conversation.)

• "A slip of the tongue/pen": An unintentional error in speaking or writing.

  • Calling the boss by the wrong name was just a slip of the tongue. (It was an accidental verbal mistake.)

• "To slip one's mind": To be forgotten.

  • I meant to call you, but it completely slipped my mind. (I intended to call you, but I forgot completely.)

Variants and Related Words

• Slippage (n): The act or an instance of slipping, especially a decline in standard or level.
  • There has been a slippage in the project's timeline.
• Slippy (adj, informal): Slippery.
  • The roads are slippy after the rain.
• Slip-on (n): A type of shoe without laces or fastenings.
  • He wore comfortable slip-ons.

Synonyms

• Noun (error): Mistake, blunder, lapse.
• Verb (slide): Skid, slide, lose one's footing.
• Verb (move quietly): Sneak, steal, creep.

Related Phrasal Verbs

• Slip away: To leave quietly or unnoticed; (of time) to pass quickly.

  • She slipped away from the party early. (She left the party quietly and early.)
  • The afternoon slipped away as we talked. (The afternoon passed quickly as we talked.)

• Slip into:

  • To put on (clothes) quickly or easily.

    • I'll just slip into something more comfortable.
  • To enter a place or state quietly or gradually.

    • He slipped into the room without a sound.
    • The patient slipped into a coma.

• Slip out:

  • To leave quietly.

    • I have to slip out for a moment.
  • To be said accidentally.

    • The rude remark just slipped out.

• Slip up: To make a careless mistake.

  • The accountant slipped up and missed a decimal point. (The accountant made an error.)

Related Idioms

• There's many a slip 'twixt the cup and the lip: Many things can go wrong between planning and achieving something.

  • We think we've won the contract, but there's many a slip 'twixt the cup and the lip. (Unexpected problems could still occur.)

• To give someone the slip: To escape from or evade someone.

  • The fugitive managed to give the police the slip. (The fugitive escaped from the police.)

Noun

1. the act of avoiding capture (especially by cunning)
2. a flight maneuver; aircraft slides sideways in the air
3. an unexpected slide
4. bed linen consisting of a cover for a pillow
   • the burglar carried his loot in a pillowcase
5. a woman's sleeveless undergarment
6. a small sheet of paper
   • a receipt slip
7. artifact consisting of a narrow flat piece of material
8. a slippery smoothness
   • he could feel the slickness of the tiller
9. an accidental misstep threatening (or causing) a fall
   • he blamed his slip on the ice
   • the jolt caused many slips and a few spills
10. a place where a craft can be made fast
11. a young and slender person
    • he's a mere slip of a lad
12. a part (sometimes a root or leaf or bud) removed from a plant to propagate a new plant through rooting or grafting
13. potter's clay that is thinned and used for coating or decorating ceramics
14. a minor inadvertent mistake usually observed in speech or writing or in small accidents or memory lapses etc.
15. a socially awkward or tactless act

Verb

1. move out of position
   • dislocate joints
   • the artificial hip joint luxated and had to be put back surgically
2. pass out of one's memory
3. cause to move with a smooth or sliding motion
   • he slipped the bolt into place
4. move easily
   • slip into something comfortable
5. pass on stealthily
   • He slipped me the key when nobody was looking
6. to make a mistake or be incorrect
7. move smoothly and easily
   • the bolt slipped into place
   • water slipped from the polished marble
8. get worse
   • My grades are slipping
9. move obliquely or sideways, usually in an uncontrolled manner
   • the wheels skidded against the sidewalk
10. insert inconspicuously or quickly or quietly
    • He slipped some money into the waiter's hand
11. move stealthily
    • The ship slipped away in the darkness