Slick — Meaning, Definition & Synonyms

adjective verb noun adverb /ˈslik/

Meaning & Definition of Slick

Slick (adjective)

  1. having a smooth surface, slippery
  2. having surface plausibility or appeal, glossy
  3. based on stereotype, trite

Slick (verb)

  1. to make sleek or smooth
  2. spruce —usually used with up

Slick (noun)

  1. something that is smooth or slippery; especially, a smooth patch of water covered with a film of oil
  2. a film of oil
  3. an automobile tire made without a tread for maximum traction (as in drag racing)

Slick (adverb)

  1. in a smooth or clever manner

Slick (verb) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. to coat (something) with a slippery substance in order to reduce friction

    "slicking the bottom of their skis with wax"

    similar: grease, lubricate, oil, wax
    related: bathe, douse, drench, soak, souse, wash, water, wet
    near: coarsen, rough, roughen, dehydrate, dry, parch, sear

Slick (adjective) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. having or being a surface so smooth as to greatly reduce traction

    "roads are often slick during the first hour of a rainstorm"

    similar: greased, greasy, lubricated, oiled, slicked, slippery, slippy, slithery
    related: brushed, buffed, burnished, glossed, ground, polished, rubbed, shined, coated, glazed, waxed, soapy, waxy, rasped, sandblasted, sanded, sandpapered, scoured, scraped, scrubbed
    near: coarsened, rough, roughened, scuffed, uneven

  2. clever at attaining one's ends by indirect and often deceptive means

    "a slick ad campaign that made smoking look cool and sexy"

    similar: artful, beguiling, cagey, crafty, cunning, cute, designing, devious, dodgy (chiefly British), foxy, guileful, scheming, shrewd, sly, subtle, tricky, wily
    related: astute, facile, glib, sharp, crooked, deceitful, deceptive, dishonest, fraudulent, insinuating, knavish, Machiavellian, oblique, serpentine, shady, shifty, slippery, sneaky, treacherous, underhand, underhanded, unscrupulous, backhanded, double-dealing, hypocritical, insincere, left-handed, mealy, mealymouthed, smooth-tongued, two-faced, circuitous, circular, roundabout, clandestine, concealed, covert, furtive, hugger-mugger, secret, stealthy, surreptitious, undercover, calculating, plotting
    opposite: artless, guileless, ingenuous, innocent, undesigning
    near: obvious, open, patent, plain, public, unconcealed, aboveboard, candid, direct, forthright, frank, honest, natural, outspoken, plainspoken, real, simple, sincere, straightforward, unaffected, unpretending, unpretentious, unvarnished, childlike, impressionable, simpleminded, unsophisticated, unworldly, unforced, unstudied, trustful, trusting

  3. of the very best kind

    "that's a slick new suit you have on"

    similar: A-OK, A1, awesome, bang-up, banner, beautiful, blue-chip, blue-ribbon, boffo, bonny (chiefly British), boss (slang), brag, brave, bully, bumper, capital, choice, classic, cool (slang), corking, crackerjack, cracking, dandy, divine, dope (slang), down (slang), dynamite, excellent, fab, fabulous, famous, fantabulous (slang), fantastic, fine, first-class, first-rate, first-string, five-star, four-star, frontline, gangbusters, gilt-edged, gone (slang), grand, great, groovy, heavenly, high-class, hot, hype (slang), immense, jim-dandy, keen, lovely, marvelous, mean, neat, nifty, noble, number one, numero uno, out-of-sight (slang), par excellence, peachy, peachy keen, phat (slang), prime, primo (slang), prize, prizewinning, quality, radical (slang), righteous (slang), sensational, splendid, stellar, sterling, superb, superior, superlative, supernal, swell, terrific, tip-top, top, top-notch, top-of-the-line, top-shelf, topflight, topping (chiefly British), unsurpassed, wizard (chiefly British), wonderful, out of this world, too much
    related: acceptable, adequate, all right, decent, good, OK, passable, satisfactory, tolerable, better, exceptional, fancy, high-grade, high-test, premium, select, special, superfine, classical, standard, traditional
    opposite: atrocious, awful, execrable, lousy, pathetic, poor, rotten, terrible, vile, wretched
    near: bad, inferior, low-grade, substandard, unsatisfactory, mediocre, middling, second-class, second-rate

Slick (noun) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. as in pictorial

    similar: pictorial, fanzine, broadside, edition, extra, sheet, supplement, tab, tabloid, digest, little magazine, newsletter, newsmagazine, newsweekly, annual, bimonthly, biweekly, daily, monthly, quarterly, semimonthly, semiweekly, triweekly, weekly, yearbook, book, bulletin, diurnal, gazette, journal, mag, magazine, newspaper, organ, paper, periodical, rag, review, serial, zine

  2. as in slicker, smoothy

    similar: fast-talker, slicker, slickster, slyboots, smoothy, wheeler-dealer, adventurer, fox, gamesman, knave, prankster, rascal, rogue, plotter, schemer, sneak, sneaker, bluffer, charlatan, fake, faker, humbug, impostor, mountebank, phony, pretender, quack, quacksalver, ringer, sham, blackleg, cardsharp, double-crosser, double-dealer, bilk, bilker, cheat, cheater, chiseler, confidence man, cozener, defrauder, dodger, fakir, finagler, fraudster (chiefly British), hoaxer, scammer, scamster, shark, sharper, sharpie, skinner, swindler, tricker, trickster

  3. as in helicopter, chopper

    similar: chopper, copter, eggbeater, helicopter, helo, whirlybird, autogiro, convertiplane, gyroplane, tilt-rotor, rotary-wing aircraft, rotorcraft

Synonyms, Thesaurus & Another Word for Slick

The most common words with a similar meaning to Slick:

Slang: boss, cool, dope, down, fantabulous, gone, hype, out-of-sight, phat, primo, radical, righteous
Chiefly British: dodgy, bonny, topping, wizard, fraudster
grease, lubricate, oil, wax, greased, greasy, lubricated, oiled, slicked, slippery, slippy, slithery, artful, beguiling, cagey, crafty, cunning, cute, designing, devious, foxy, guileful, scheming, shrewd, sly, subtle, tricky, wily, A-OK, A1, awesome, bang-up, banner, beautiful, blue-chip, blue-ribbon, boffo, brag, brave, bully

Antonyms & Opposite Words for Slick

Words with the opposite meaning of Slick:

artless, guileless, ingenuous, innocent, undesigning, atrocious, awful, execrable, lousy, pathetic, poor, rotten, terrible, vile, wretched

Related Words for Slick

bathe, douse, drench, soak, souse, wash, water, wet, brushed, buffed, burnished, glossed, ground, polished, rubbed, shined, coated, glazed, waxed, soapy, waxy, rasped, sandblasted, sanded, sandpapered, scoured, scraped, scrubbed, astute, facile

Near Antonyms of Slick

coarsen, rough, roughen, dehydrate, dry, parch, sear, coarsened, roughened, scuffed, uneven, obvious, open, patent, plain, public, unconcealed, aboveboard, candid, direct, forthright, frank, honest, natural, outspoken, plainspoken, real, simple, sincere, straightforward

Word Forms of Slick

Inflections: slicker, slickest, slicked, slicking, slicks

Derived words: slickly (adverb), slickness (noun)

Origin & Etymology of Slick

Middle English slyke; akin to Old English *slician

First known use: 14th century

Words & Phrases Containing Slick

slick-ear, slick back/down, oil slick

Frequently Asked Questions about Slick

What does "Slick" mean?

"Slick" means having a smooth surface, slippery. As an an adjective, a verb, a noun and an adverb, it is defined as: having a smooth surface, slippery. It has 7 distinct senses.

What is another word for "Slick"?

Other words for "Slick" include grease, lubricate, oil, wax, greased, greasy, lubricated and oiled. The best synonym depends on which meaning of "Slick" you intend.

What are different ways to say "Slick"?

There are 325 words and phrases with a similar meaning to "Slick". Common alternatives include grease, lubricate, oil, wax, greased, greasy, lubricated, oiled, slicked and slippery.

What is a slang word for "Slick"?

Slang words for "Slick" include boss, cool, dope, down, fantabulous and gone.

What is the opposite of "Slick"?

Antonyms of "Slick" include artless, guileless, ingenuous, innocent, undesigning, atrocious, awful and execrable. Near antonyms include coarsen, rough, roughen and dehydrate.

How do you use "Slick" in a sentence?

Examples of "Slick" in a sentence: "slicking the bottom of their skis with wax"; "roads are often slick during the first hour of a rainstorm"; "a slick ad campaign that made smoking look cool and sexy".

Is "Slick" a noun, verb, or adjective?

"Slick" can be used as an adjective, a verb, a noun and an adverb, depending on the context.

How do you pronounce "Slick"?

"Slick" is pronounced /ˈslik/.