slough 1 of 3

variants also slew or slue
as in marsh
spongy land saturated or partially covered with water the land for miles around the lake is strewn with ponds, sloughs, and mudflats

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slough

2 of 3

verb (1)

slough

3 of 3

verb (2)

variants also sluff
as in to shed
to cast (a natural bodily covering or appendage) aside the snake is sloughing its old skin

Synonyms & Similar Words

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How is the word slough different from other verbs like it?

Some common synonyms of slough are cast, discard, junk, scrap, and shed. While all these words mean "to get rid of," shed and slough imply a throwing off of something both useless and encumbering and often suggest a consequent renewal of vitality or luster.

shed a bad habit
finally sloughed off the depression

When is it sensible to use cast instead of slough?

The words cast and slough can be used in similar contexts, but cast, especially when used with off, away, or out, implies a forceful rejection or repudiation.

cast off her friends

When might discard be a better fit than slough?

The meanings of discard and slough largely overlap; however, discard implies the letting go or throwing away of something that has become useless or superfluous though often not intrinsically valueless.

discard old clothes

How do scrap and junk relate to one another, in the sense of slough?

Both scrap and junk imply throwing away or breaking up as worthless in existent form.

scrap all the old ways
would junk our educational system

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of slough
Noun
In case this is done, that street that is now laid out through the slough will have to be vacated by the process of law. Contributed Content, Twin Cities, 7 Feb. 2025 The sad end of the MS Aurora is a familiar story in the Delta’s marshy sloughs. Jessica Garrison, Los Angeles Times, 22 Nov. 2024
Verb
But if colleges and universities are sloughing off work experience for programs like NP, what hope is there for the rest of us? Ryan Craig, Forbes, 10 Jan. 2025 Although exfoliation is beneficial, sloughing away the dead skin cells that can clog pores and make skin look less than radiant, doing it too often can cause irritation, redness, and even breakouts. Lindy Segal, Allure, 23 May 2025 See All Example Sentences for slough
Recent Examples of Synonyms for slough
Noun
  • Their natural habitat is near ponds, marshes, rivers, and lakes.
    Mary Marlowe Leverette, Southern Living, 11 June 2025
  • Alligators are common in North Carolina American alligators occur naturally in North Carolina, according to North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission, and can be found inhabiting bay lakes, rivers, creeks, marshes, swamps and ponds.
    Saman Shafiq, USA Today, 4 June 2025
Noun
  • The empty shoreline where volunteers worked in May was previously a thick mangrove wetland, before Hurricane Ian devastated the Fort Myers area in 2022.
    Christina Kelso, New York Times, 24 June 2025
  • In the long term, Caltrans has a plan to replace the current road with an elevated causeway that would move vehicles above the wetlands below.
    Ariane Lange, Sacbee.com, 23 June 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Slough.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/slough. Accessed 1 Jul. 2025.

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