slither

verb

slith·​er ˈsli-t͟hər 

slithered; slithering; slithers

intransitive verb

1

: to slide on or as if on a loose gravelly surface

2

: to slip or slide like a snake

transitive verb

: to cause to slide

Synonyms

• snake
• crawl
• creep
• slide

Examples of slither in a Sentence

The snake slithered through the garden.

To get under the porch, I lay on my stomach and slithered like a snake.

She slithered quietly into the room.

He slithered his hand around her waist.

Recent Examples on the Web

During this time, around two dozen species of snakes slither from their winter dens in high limestone cliffs to their summer feeding grounds in LaRue Swamp. —Owen Clarke, Outside, 19 Sep. 2025

Danger is slithering around Tennessee Tennessee is home to dozens of species of snakes, but there are only four venomous ones that people, and animals like chickens, should watch out for. —Craig Shoup, Nashville Tennessean, 18 Sep. 2025

Walton Goggins slithered into the 2025 Emmys with some apt nods to The White Lotus. —Jessica Wang, Entertainment Weekly, 14 Sep. 2025

Their layers of meaning multiplied and slithered out of my grasp. —Literary Hub, 25 Aug. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English slideren, from Old English slidrian, frequentative of slīdan to slide

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Rhymes for slither

• cither
• dither
• hither
• ither
• thither
• whither
• zither

Kids Definition

slither

verb

slith·​er ˈslit͟h-ər 

1

: to slide or cause to slide on or as if on a loose gravelly surface

2

: to slip or slide like a snake