slush

noun \ ˈsləsh \

Updated on: 20 Apr 2018

Definition of slush

1 a : partly melted or watery snow

b : loose ice crystals formed during the early stages of freezing of salt water

2 : soft mud : mire

3 : refuse grease and fat from cooking especially on shipboard

4 : paper pulp in water suspension

5 : trashy and usually cheaply sentimental material

6 : unsolicited writings submitted (as to a magazine) for publication

See slush defined for English-language learners

See slush defined for kids

Examples of slush in a Sentence

a sidewalk covered with slush
The movie is just a lot of romantic slush.

Recent Examples of slush from the Web

Pick you base from choices such as mango green tea, strawberry slush or sea salt caramel milk tea.

— jennifer mcclellan, azcentral, "New restaurants in Phoenix in March: 37 openings in a month may set a record," 2 Apr. 2018
The quaint cafe serves up fruit tea, slushes, smoothies, milk teas, and yogurt drinks with boba, fruit jellies, or popping boba.

— tara massouleh, AL.com, "How to spend a day in Inverness on Highway 280," 14 Mar. 2018
In the midst of Tuesday’s storm, much of downtown Boston looked deserted — except for armies of seasonal workers shoveling snow, squeegeeing slush, and occasionally ducking into a warm space to escape the biting winds.

— cristela guerra, BostonGlobe.com, "Snow shoveled downtown? An immigrant probably cleared it," 13 Mar. 2018
The wind knocked gobs of slush and snow off buildings and trees in Philadelphia and New York, forcing pedestrians to watch out.

— Washington Post, "‘Kind of awful’: Another snowstorm clobbers the Northeast," 7 Mar. 2018
In winter, bring serious gear like down coats, tights, and boots that’ll hold up to slush and ice.

— paul brady, Condé Nast Traveler, "The Essential Things to Know Before You Visit Chicago," 28 Feb. 2018
Police cruisers are so old many of them are rusted out, allowing slush to splash through the floor boards.

— jennifer conn, akron reporter, cleveland.com, "Talk it Out: Where should Akron's income tax dollars go first: police and fire services or roads?," 16 Jan. 2018
In January, another BMW owner driving through the underpass hit a pothole covered by snow and slush, causing more than $4,000 in damage, according to a claim filed with the city.

— laura crimaldi, BostonGlobe.com, "Car damaged by a pothole? The city might pay you back," 1 Apr. 2018
While the fourth of these storms stilled coated the city with snow and slush late Wednesday, much of what fell in Manhattan has already melted, leaving icy puddles.

— Bloomberg.com, "Snowstorm Delivers Sloppy Mess to New York," 21 Mar. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'slush.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of slush

perhaps of Scandinavian origin; akin to Norwegian slusk slush

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1641

in the meaning defined at sense 1a

See Words from the same year

slush Synonyms

Synonyms

guck (or gook), mire, muck, mud, ooze, slime, slop, sludge;

Related Words

gumbo, silt;

clay, dirt, gravel, humus, loam, sand, soil;

slush

verb

Definition of slush

transitive verb

: to wet or splash with slush

intransitive verb

1 : to make one's way through slush

2 : to make a splashing sound

Recent Examples of slush from the Web

As of midday, many streets in the Milwaukee area were still snow- and slushed-covered.

— meg jones, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Drivers warned about hazardous road conditions as snow ends," 8 Feb. 2018
On a snowy cold day in South Philadelphia, Army and Navy slushed their way through an entertaining game with Army winning its second in a row in the annual series, 14-13.

— marc narducci, Philly.com, "Quick takes on Army's 14-13 win over Navy," 9 Dec. 2017
Rain and slush would make for a miserable day anywhere, but the weird weather patterns observed over the two-week period in 2016 painted a potentially worrisome picture for the future.

— aj willingham, CNN, "A huge part of Antarctica is melting and scientists say that's bad news," 19 June 2017