3

What's the difference between these terms?

slippery

: tending or liable to cause slipping or sliding, as ice, oil, or a wet surface: a slippery road. Random House Kennerman Webster's College Dictionary

slick

: smooth, glossy, and slippery: sidewalks slick with ice. AHD

: (US and Canadian) smooth and glossy; slippery. CED

Ngram

Ngram slick w/ ice vs. slippery w/ ice

Improve this question
1
  • From the definitions provided it seems that slick refers to the object's appearance ("smooth, glossy") whereas slippery does not.
    – user116295
    Commented Dec 30, 2015 at 20:13

1 Answer 1

Reset to default
5

To this Minnesotan in the middle of winter, pretty much what it says.

A "slick" surface is smooth, and will tend to be slippery (though a slick smooth floor is not slippery to rubber-soled shoes, for example). Ice is usually, but not always, "slick".

A "slippery" surface is one which is apt to result in slipping (and possibly falling, if walking across it). The slipperiness could be due to ice, oil, loose gravel, etc.

(Though admittedly the terms are often interchanged with little regard, especially by radio announcers looking for a different way to describe road conditions.)

Improve this answer
1
  • Good answer. Smooth versus apt to result in slipping. (And a slick surface is often slippery too.)
    – Drew
    Commented Dec 31, 2015 at 7:57

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .