Dictionary-Definition.com :: Slough definition

Definition of 'slough'

noun

Necrotic tissue; a mortified or gangrenous part or mass [syn: gangrene, sphacelus, slough]

noun

A hollow filled with mud

noun

A stagnant swamp (especially as part of a bayou)

noun

Any outer covering that can be shed or cast off (such as the cast-off skin of a snake)

verb

Cast off hair, skin, horn, or feathers; "our dog sheds every Spring" [syn: shed, molt, exuviate, moult, slough]

From: GCIDE

From: GCIDE

Slough \Slough\, n. [OE. slogh, slough, AS. sl[=o]h a hollow place; cf. MHG. sl[=u]ch an abyss, gullet, G. schlucken to swallow; also Gael. & Ir. sloc a pit, pool. ditch, Ir. slug to swallow. Gr. ????? to hiccough, to sob.]
1. A place of deep mud or mire; a hole full of mire. --Chaucer. [1913 Webster]
He's here stuck in a slough. --Milton. [1913 Webster]
2. [Pronounced sl[=oo].] A wet place; a swale; a side channel or inlet from a river.
Note: [In this sense local or provincial; also spelt sloo, and slue.] [1913 Webster]
Slough grass (Bot.), a name in the Mississippi valley for grasses of the genus Muhlenbergia; -- called also {drop seed}, and nimble Will. [1913 Webster]

From: GCIDE

From: GCIDE

Slough \Slough\, n. [OE. slugh, slouh; cf. MHG. sl?ch the skin of a serpent, G. schlauch a skin, a leather bag or bottle.]
1. The skin, commonly the cast-off skin, of a serpent or of some similar animal. [1913 Webster]
2. (Med.) The dead mass separating from a foul sore; the dead part which separates from the living tissue in mortification. [1913 Webster]

From: GCIDE

Slough \Slough\, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Sloughed; p. pr. & vb. n. Sloughing.] (Med.) To form a slough; to separate in the form of dead matter from the living tissues; -- often used with off, or away; as, a sloughing ulcer; the dead tissues slough off slowly. [1913 Webster]

From: GCIDE

Slough \Slough\, v. t. To cast off; to discard as refuse. [1913 Webster]
New tint the plumage of the birds, And slough decay from grazing herds. --Emerson. [1913 Webster]