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Added 8 October 2026

slur

/slɜː/ noun

noun Definition from WordNet 3.1, Princeton University. Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about slur at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

(music) a curved line spanning notes that are to be played legato.
A disparaging remark.
in the 19th century any reference to female sexuality was considered a vile aspersion
A blemish made by dirt.
he had a smudge on his cheek

verb

Play smoothly or legato.
the pianist slurred the most beautiful passage in the sonata
Speak disparagingly of; e.g., make a racial slur.
your comments are slurring your co-workers
Utter indistinctly.

Origin

From Middle English sloor (“thin or fluid mud”). The ultimate origin is uncertain, but perhaps related to a group of words derived from Proto-Germanic *slūm- (“loose, slack, flabby”), such as slumber. Cognate with Middle Low German sluren (“to trail in mud”). Also related to dialectal Norwegian sløra (“to be careless, to scamp, dawdle”), Danish sløre (“to wobble, be loose”) (especially for wheels); compare Old Norse slóðra (“to drag oneself along”). * (an extremely offensive term): Influenced by various compounds of sense 1 such as racial slur, ethnic slur, etc.

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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