slay
verbadjectivenouninterjectionnounattested in dialogue
- //sleɪ//
To kill; to murder.
verb
- 1
To kill; to murder.
The knight slew the dragon.
Our foes must all be slain.
The Prince of Morocco: […]By this scimitar, That slew the Sophy and a Persian prince That won three fields of Sultan Solyman, I would outstare the sternest eyes that look, Outbrave the heart most daring on earth, Pluck the young sucking cubs from the she-bear, Yea, mock the lion when he roars for prey, To win thee, lady. […]
Slay not your children, fearing a fall to poverty, We shall provide for them and for you. Lo! the slaying of them is great sin.
- 2
To eradicate or stamp out.
You must slay these thoughts.
- 3
informalTo defeat; to overcome (in a competition or contest).
[object Object]
[object Object]
The Yankees were actually slayed by two former Yankees because Rich Gossage pitched one scoreless inning in relief of Eckersley to notch his first victory.
- 4
slangTo delight or overwhelm, especially with laughter.
Ha ha! You slay me!
He snapped his fingers contemptuously at the alarm clock. "I fear thee not, thou ticking tyrant." "You slay me," grinned Cedric.
- 5
To amaze, stun, or otherwise incapacitate by excellence; to excel at something.
Your outfit slays!
Movie buffs will love this costume from Beetlejuice. And even if you don't have someone to double team this look with, each costume can easily slay on its own.
- 6
slangTo have sex with.
Etymology
From Middle English sleen, slen, from Old English slēan (“to hit, punch, strike; to kill”), from Proto-West Germanic *slahan, from Proto-Germanic *slahaną (“to hit, strike; to kill”), from Proto-Indo-European *slak- (“to hit, strike, throw”). Cognates Cognate with Alemannic German schlaa (“to beat, hit”), Central Franconian schlage, schlon, schloon (“to beat, hit, strike”), Dutch and Low German slaan (“to beat, hit, strike”), German schlagen, schlahen, schlahn (“to beat, hit, strike”), Luxembourgish schloen (“to beat, defeat, hit”), Danish, Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk, and Swedish slå (“to beat, hit, strike”), Faroese sláa (“to beat, strike”), Icelandic slá (“to hit, strike”), Gothic 𐍃𐌻𐌰𐌷𐌰𐌽 (slahan, “to hit, smite, strike”). Related to slaughter, onslaught.
adjective
- 1
That slays (in any sense).
noun
- 1
Something excellent, amazing, or fashionable.
Equally effervescent was EmRata [Emily Ratajkowski] in 2001 Versace; meanwhile Zendaya, clothed in a 1996 John Galliano for Givenchy gown that could rival Queen Victoria’s regal mourning robes, was a slay for the ages.
“Let’s work it out on a remix” can be applied to many situations. It’s a public truce under the guise of a joint slay. A bride is making unreasonable demands of her wedding party and the maid of honor might quit? They should work it out on a remix (establish a budget).
interjection
- 1
Used to express approval or amazement.
Despite its dismal performance at the box office, Jennifer’s Body has become a cult favourite – particularly amongst queer women. The horror-comedy stars Megan Fox as a cheerleader who becomes possessed by a succubus – a demon who seduces men, kills them and devours their flesh etc. Slay!
noun
- 1
Variant of sleyAlternative form of sley
Etymology
See sley
Forms
- plural
- slays
- comparative
- more slay
- superlative
- most slay
- past tense
- slew, slayed
- past participle
- slain, slayed, yslain
- present participle
- slaying
- third person singular
- slays