slew | Search Online Etymology Dictionary

6 entries found.

"swampy place," 1708, North American variant of slough.

"to turn, swing, twist," 1834, earlier slue (1769), a nautical word, of unknown origin. Slewed (1801) is old nautical slang for "drunk." Slew-foot "clumsy person who walks with feet turned out" is from 1896.

slew (n.2)

"large number," 1839, from Irish sluagh "a host, crowd, multitude," from Celtic and Balto-Slavic *sloug- "help, service" (see slogan).

Bellerophon

local hero of Corinth, who slew the Chimera, from Latin form of Greek Bellerophontes, probably literally "killer of (the demon) Bellerus," with -phontes "killer of."

slogan (n.)

1670s, earlier slogorne (1510s), "battle cry," from Gaelic sluagh-ghairm "battle cry used by Scottish Highland or Irish clans," from sluagh "army, host, slew," from Celtic and Balto-Slavic *slough- "help, service." Second element is gairm "a cry" (see garrulous). Metaphoric sense of "distinctive word or phrase used by a political or other group" is first attested 1704.

hydra (n.)

name of the many-headed Lernaean water serpent slain by Herakles in Greek mythology, late 14c., idre, from Greek Hydra, fem. of hydros "water-snake," from hydor "water" (from suffixed form of PIE root *wed- (1) "water; wet").

The word is etymologically related to Sanskrit udrah "aquatic animal" and Old English ottur (see otter). Used figuratively for "any multiplicity of evils" [Johnson]. The fabulous beast's heads were said to grown back double when cut off. As a constellation (see Hydrus), usually identified as the monster Herakles slew, from mid-15c. As the genus name of a freshwater polyp from 1798; said to have been so called by Linnaeus for its regenerative capabilities.

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