intransitive verbslunk, slink′ing
Origin of slinkMiddle English slinken from Old English slincan, to creep, crawl along, akin to Low German slinken from Indo-European an unverified form sleng-, variant, variety of base an unverified form slenk-, to wind, twist, turn from source sling
transitive verbslinked or slunk, slink′ing
Origin of slinkprobably from sling
verbslunk, also slinked slink·ing, slinks
Origin of slinkMiddle English slinken from Old English slincan
(third-person singular simple present slinks, present participle slinking, simple past and past participle slunk, slinked or slank)
- The young of an animal when born prematurely, especially a calf.
- (UK, Scotland, dialect) A thievish fellow; a sneak.
From Old English slincan (“to creep, crawl"), from Proto-Germanic *slinkanÄ… (compare Dutch slinken (“to shrink, shrivel"), Swedish slinka (“to glide")).