[slap one’s wrist]{v. phr.} To receive a light punishment. •/She could have been fired for contradicting the company president in public, but all she got was a slap on the wrist./

[slap together] See: THROW TOGETHER(1).

[slate] See: CLEAN SLATE.

[slated for] or [slated to be] Going to be; planned or intended for. •/People think the governor is slated to be president./ •/That subject is slated for debate at the next meeting./

[slave driver]{n.} A cruel, merciless boss or employer who makes the people under him work extremely hard for little compensation. •/Mr. Catwallender is such a slave driver that nobody cares to work for him anymore./

[sledding] See: HARD SLEDDING or ROUGH SLEDDING or TOUGH SLEDDING.

[sleep] See: BEAUTY SLEEP, LET SLEEPING DOGS LIE, SLEEP A WINK.

[sleep around]{v. phr.}, {slang}, {vulgar}, {avoidable} To be free with one’s sexual favors; to behave promiscuously. •/Sue Catwallender is a nice girl but she sleeps around an awful lot with all sorts of guys./

[sleep a wink]{v. phr.} To get a moment’s sleep; enjoy a bit of sleep. — Used in negative and conditional statements and in questions. •/I didn’t sleep a wink all night./

[sleep like a log]{v. phr.} To sleep very deeply and soundly. •/Although I am usually a light sleeper, I was so exhausted from the sixteen-hour transpacific flight that, once we got home, I slept like a log for twelve hours./

[sleep off]{v. phr.} To sleep until the effect of too much alcohol or drugs passes. •/George had too many beers last night and he is now sleeping off the effects./

[sleep on]{v.} To postpone a decision about. •/We asked Judy if she would join our club and she answered that she would sleep on it./ •/We will have to sleep on your invitation until we know whether we will be free Monday night./

[sleep out]{v.} 1. To sleep outdoors. •/The Scouts plan to sleep out next Saturday./ 2. To go home at night instead of sleeping at the place where you work. •/Mrs. Jones' maid sleeps in, but her cook sleeps out./

[sleep with]{v. phr.} To have a sexual affair with someone; have sex; copulate. •/It has been rumored in the office that the boss sleeps with all the girls he hires./

[sleeve] See: CARD UP ONE’S SLEEVE, LAUGH UP ONE’S SLEEVE or LAUGH IN ONE’S SLEEVE, ROLL UP ONE’S SLEEVES, UP ONE’S SLEEVE or IN ONE’S SLEEVE, WEAR ONE’S HEART ON ONE’S SLEEVE also PIN ONE’S HEART ON ONE’S SLEEVE.

[sling hash]{v.}, {slang} To serve food, especially in a cheap, small diner, a drive-in, or short-order restaurant. •/Jake got a job slinging hash at the new drive-in restaurant./ •/Jody earned money for college by slinging hash in a restaurant during the summer./ Compare: SHORT-ORDER COOK.

[slinging match]{n. phr.} A loud, angry quarrel. •/The debate deteriorated into a most unseemly slinging match./

[slip] See: GIVE THE SLIP, SALES CHECK or SALES SLIP.

[slip a cog] or [slip a gear] {v. phr.}, {slang} To make a mistake. •/I must have been slipping a cog when I said that I would run for mayor./ •/Jim hates to sleep outdoors. He’s slipping his gears if he’s promised to take the boys camping./ Compare: SLIP UP.

[slip away]{v. phr.} To leave unnoticed. •/The party was such a bore that we decided to quietly slip away./

[slip off]{v. phr.} 1. To slide off something. •/The children climbed up the hill but when it was time to come down, they didn’t walk, but slipped off the smooth, old ledges./ 2. See: SLIP AWAY.

[slip of the lip] See: SLIP OF THE TONGUE.

[slip of the pen]{n. phr.} The mistake of writing something different from what you should or what you planned. •/That was a slip of the pen. I meant to write September, not November./ •/I wish you would forget it. That was a slip of the pen./

[slip of the tongue] also [slip of the lip] {n. phr.} The mistake of saying something you had not wanted or planned to say; an error of speech. •/No one would have known our plans if Kay hadn’t made a slip of the tongue./ •/She didn’t mean to tell our secret; it was a slip of the lip./

[slip one’s mind]{v. phr.} To forget something. •/I meant to mail those letters but it entirely slipped my mind./

[slip over] See: PUT OVER(2).

[slip through one’s fingers]{v. phr.} To escape without someone’s knowing how. •/Policemen surrounded the building, but the thief managed to slip through their fingers./ •/Mike earns a good wage, but he doesn’t save a penny. Money just slips through his fingers./

[slipup]{n.} A mistake. •/"I’m sorry, sir. That was an unfortunate slipup," the barber said when he scratched the client’s face./

[slip up]{v. phr.} To make a mistake. •/Someone at the bank slipped up. There are only 48 pennies in this 50c roll of coins./ •/If he hadn’t slipped up on the last questions, his score on the test would have been perfect./

[slow burn]{n.}, {informal} A slowly increasing feeling of anger. •/The boys kept teasing John, and watched him do a slow burn./ •/Barbara’s slow burn ended only when Mary explained the misunderstanding./

[slowdown]{n.} A period of lesser activity, usually in the economic sphere. •/We all hope the current slowdown in the economy will soon be over./

[slow down]{v. phr.} To go more slowly than usual. •/The road was slippery, so Mr. Jones slowed down the car./ •/Pat once could run a mile in five minutes, but now that he’s older he’s slowing down./ Compare: LET UP(2). STEP DOWN. Contrast: SPEED UP.

[slow on the draw]{adj. phr.} Not very smart; having difficulty figuring things out. •/Poor Eric doesn’t get very good grades in physics; when it comes to problem-solving, he is rather slow on the draw./

[slow on the uptake] See: SLOW ON THE DRAW.

[slow tune] See: STANDARD TIME.

[slow up]{v.} 1. To go more slowly. •/The truck slowed up as it approached the toll gate./ •/Construction on the road slows up traffic./ 2. To become less busy. •/Business slows up at the stores after Christmas./

[slug it out]{v. phr.} To have a strong verbal or physical battle with someone; to contest something most vigorously. •/The two contenders for the lightweight boxing championship were slugging it out in the ring./ •/The two candidates for Congress were slugging it out on radio and on television./

[sly] See: ON THE SLY.

[smack-dab] also {southern} [smack-to-dab] {adv.}, {informal} Exactly; squarely. •/The ball landed smack-dab at our feet./ •/The plane landed smack-to-dab in the middle of the hay field./

[smack one’s lips]{v. phr.} To reveal an appetite for; show enjoyment of. •/Eleanor smacked her lips over the dessert of strawberries and whipped cream./

[small] See: BIG FROG IN A SMALL POND.

[small frog in a big pond] See: LITTLE FROG IN A BIG POND.

[small fry]{n.} 1. Young children. •/In the park, a sandbox is provided for the small fry./ 2. Something or someone of little importance. •/Large dairies ignore the competition from the small fry who make only a few hundred pounds of cheese a year./