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A spongy, semivitrifled substance which miners or smelters mix with the ores of metals to prevent their fusion. [Written also slakin.]

come slack; to be made less tense, firm, or rigid; to decrease in tension; as, a wet cord slackens in dry weather.

To put round the bitts; as, to bitt the cable, in order to fasten it or to slacken it gradually, which is called veering away. Totten.

. -- Submarine cable. See Telegraph. -- To pay out the cable, To veer out the cable, to slacken it, that it may run out of the ship; to let more cable run out of the hawse hole. -- To serve the cable, to bind it round with ropes, canvas, etc., to prevent its being, worn or galled in the hawse, et. -- To slip the ca…

, as a fashion. -- To come up the capstan (Naut.), to turn it the contrary way, so as to slacken the rope about it. -- To come up the tackle fall (Naut.), to slacken the tackle gently. Totten. -- To come up to, to rise to; to equal. -- To come up with, to overtake or reach by pursuit. -- To come upon. (a) To befal…

To strike or lower in haste; to slacken suddenly; as, douse the topsail.

teen yards. To drop astern (Naut.), to go astern of another vessel; to be left behind; to slacken the speed of a vessel so as to fall behind and to let another pass a head. -- To drop down (Naut.), to sail, row, or move down a river, or toward the sea. -- To drop off, to fall asleep gently; also, to die. [Colloq.]…

in; to furnish with accommodations. [Obs.] Chaucer. To ease off, To ease away (Naut.), to slacken a rope gradually. -- To ease a ship (Naut.), to put the helm hard, or regulate the sail, to prevent pitching when closehauled. -- To ease the helm (Naut.), to put the helm more nearly amidships, to lessen the effect on t…

expansive; extended, superficially or otherwise. Men and gods are too extense; Could you slacken and condense Emerson.

To cause to lag; to slacken. [Obs.] "To lag his flight." Heywood.

The act of loosening or slackening, or the state of being loosened or slackened.

Slackening; retarding. Same as Rallentando.

mage, as to a sovereign or other superior. -- To pay out (Naut.), to pass out; hence, to slacken; to allow to run out; as, to pay out more cable. See under Cable. -- To pay the piper, to bear the cost, expense, or trouble. [Colloq.]

Slackening; -- a direction to perform a passage with a gradual decrease in time and force; ritardando.

To make lax or loose; to make less close, firm, rigid, tense, or the like; to slacken; to loosen; to open; as, to relax a rope or cord; to relax the muscles or sinews. Horror . . . all his joints relaxed. Milton. Nor served it to relax their serried files. Milton.

To slacken; to abate. [Obs.] And oftentimes he would relent his pace. Spenser.

e. Three thousand ducats; 'tis a good round sum. Shak. Round was their pace at first, but slackened soon. Tennyson.

t selection or specification. -- To let run (Naut.), to allow to pass or move freely; to slacken or loosen. -- To run after, to pursue or follow; to search for; to endeavor to find or obtain; as to run after similies. Locke. -- To run away, to flee; to escape; to elope; to run without control or guidance. -- To run…

ath the yoke. Shak. He sunk down in his chariot. 2 Kings ix. 24. Let not the fire sink or slacken. Mortimer.

To slacken; to become relaxed. "When the body's strongest sinews slake." [R.] Sir J. Davies.