I. slash 1 /slæʃ/ BrE AmE verb
[ Date: 1500-1600 ; Origin: Probably from Old French eslachier 'to break' ]
1 . [intransitive, transitive always + adverb/preposition] to cut or try to cut something violently with a knife, sword etc:
Someone had slashed the tires.
slash at/through
The leopard’s claws slashed through the soft flesh.
2 . [transitive] to greatly reduce an amount, price etc – used especially in newspapers and advertising SYN cut :
The workforce has been slashed by 50%.
3 . slash your wrists to cut the ↑ vein s in your wrists with the intention of killing yourself
II. slash 2 BrE AmE noun [countable]
1 . a quick movement that you make with a knife, sword etc in order to cut someone or something
2 . ( also slash mark ) a line (/) used in writing to separate words, numbers, or letters
3 . a long narrow cut in something ⇨ gash :
Cut several slashes across the top of the loaf before baking.
4 . have/take a slash British English spoken not polite to ↑ urinate
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THESAURUS
■ other marks used in writing
▪ angle brackets British English a pair of signs <> used for enclosing information
▪ slash a line / that is used to separate words, numbers, or letters
▪ backslash a line that is used to separate words, numbers, or letters
▪ asterisk the sign * that is used especially to mark something interesting or important
▪ at sign the sign @ that is used especially in email addresses
▪ ampersand the sign & that means ‘and’