SLOW (DOWN) Synonyms: 68 Similar and Opposite Words

slow (down) 1 of 2

verb

Definition of slow (down)

as in to die (down)

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slowdown

2 of 2

noun

ˈslō-ˌdau̇n

as in decline

a usually gradual decrease in the pace or level of activity of something disease experts are encouraged by the recent slowdown in the spread of the virus

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 slow (down)

Noun

Much of the fashion conversation over the last year has centered on the luxury slowdown, as commercial pressure puts fantasy and creativity in a headlock. — Amy Francombe, Vogue, 9 Oct. 2026 And if there’s any slowdown in demand for compute or need for compute, that has second, third, and ultimately fourth order impacts on projects that haven’t even been built yet. — Liz Hoffman, semafor.com, 8 Oct. 2026 Like Zuckerberg, Huang has argued against an industry-wide slowdown, saying the recent spike in safety concerns sparked by AI agents going rogue and hacking into other companies is just an engineering problem that needs to be solved. — Clare Duffy, CNN Money, 8 Oct. 2026 Even leaders of the companies that are developing frontier AI models are calling for a slowdown so that government regulation can catch up. — Barbara Ortutay, Fortune, 8 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for slow (down)

Recent Examples of Synonyms for slow (down)

Verb

Once Isaias comes ashore, it is expected to weaken until it is downgraded to a tropical storm by Saturday afternoon, the hurricane center said.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 10 Oct. 2026
Last but certainly not least, there’s the focus on communicating local relevancy as a differentiator without weakening brand equity and DNA.

— Jennifer Weil, Footwear News, 9 Oct. 2026

Definition of weaken

Verb

His power slackened in 2025 before a slight resurgence this season.

— Andy McCullough, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2026
During an El Niño, those winds slacken, and the warm water slides eastward, leading to waters becoming generally one to two degrees Celsius above normal in the area around the Galápagos.

— Andrea Thompson, Scientific American, 27 Aug. 2026

Definition of slacken

Noun

Concerns about this recent deceleration aside, a slight quarter-to-quarter boost is obviously preferable to the bundle’s comparable loss of 953,000 customers between the first and second quarters of this year.

— Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 23 Sep. 2026
Altman and SpaceX's Elon Musk quickly backed Amodei's push for deceleration.

— CJ Haddad, CNBC, 23 Sep. 2026

Definition of deceleration

Verb

The letter, which Logan made public, does not specify the number of individuals flagged by the federal government.

— SAFIYAH RIDDLE, Arkansas Online, 15 Oct. 2026
In some reports, customers said the salesperson instructed them to authorize charges flagged by their bank as potentially fraudulent.

— Monika Evstatieva, NPR, 14 Oct. 2026

Definition of flag

Noun

When healthy, Ohtani has the ability to break out of even the most dire of slumps with an otherworldly performance, like that three-homer (as a hitter), 10-strikeout (as a pitcher) all-timer.

— Maddie Lee, Los Angeles Times, 14 Oct. 2026
In other words, even when people and businesses think ahead and act in their own interests, sticky prices can keep the economy stuck in a slump.

— Greg Rosalsky, NPR, 13 Oct. 2026

Definition of slump

Noun

By the C-suite, Latinas are 1% of executives, down from just under 5% at entry level — a drop of 78% across a career, the largest of any group in the study.

— Anna Maria Chavez, Fortune, 11 Oct. 2026
Except Fitzgerald was never inconsistent in his pass catching while Harrison has struggled with drops.

— Armando Salguero OutKick, FOXNews.com, 10 Oct. 2026

Definition of drop

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slow burn

slow (down)

slowdown

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Style

“Slow (down).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/slow%20%28down%29. Accessed 16 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of slow (down)

verb

noun

Example Sentences

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