slacken
1 of 1verb/ˈslækən/
Forms:slackens,slackening,slackened,slackened
1
to reduce in speed
C2- The hiker felt his pace slacken as he reached the uphill portion of the trail.
- After completing the sprint, the athlete allowed his speed to slacken and catch his breath.
- The conveyor belt began to slacken, causing a temporary pause in production.
- As the car ascended the steep hill, the driver felt the acceleration slacken.
2
to reduce the speed, intensity, or activity of something
transitive- Ongoing efforts are currently slackening the production speed.
- The new regulations have slackened the demand for certain products.
- The construction crew decided to slacken their pace due to the extreme heat.
- The continuous rain was continuously slackening the traffic on the roads.
3
to become looser, less tight, or less tense
- As the climber ascended the mountain, he felt the rope gradually slacken.
- The construction worker noticed the crane cable beginning to slacken as it lifted the heavy load.
- After hours of intense practice, the bowstring on the archer's bow began to slacken.
- As the storm subsided, the tension in the sails slackened.
- His grip on the bicycle handlebars slackened as he coasted downhill.
4
to make something looser or less tense by reducing tension or tightness
transitive- The supervisor instructed the workers to slacken the ropes holding the tent.
- Before attempting the yoga pose, the instructor advised the students to slacken the muscles in their shoulders.
- The mechanic had to slacken the bolts on the machinery to perform maintenance.
- In order to facilitate the fitting process, the tailor decided to slacken the waistband on the trousers.
- The coach demonstrated how to slacken the grip on the tennis racket during certain strokes
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