Dictionary

slippery slope en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• /ˌslɪ.pɹiˈsləʊp/
• /ˌslɪ.pə.ɹiˈsləʊp/
• (General-American) audio

Meanings

1. (figuratively) A chain of events that, once initiated, cannot be halted; especially one in which the final outcome is undesirable or precarious.
   • “What we’re looking at is the classic slippery slope,” he said. “If the murals can be destroyed, then no work of art that anyone finds offensive is going to be safe. And that’s an awful lot of art.” 2019 May 20, Walter Thompson, “A school's mural removal: should kids be shielded from brutal US history?”, in The Guardian:
   • But our conference would find itself on a slippery slope if we started to dig over the past and look for material for recriminations and mutual accusations. 1959, United States Department of State, quoting Mr. Gromyko, “Seventh Session, May 19, 1959”, in International Organization and Conference Series:
   • I think basing your actions off an assumption like that is a slippery slope that is going to get you in trouble.
   • The path of closures and withdrawals is a slippery slope that can by itself create in the mind of the public—and particularly traders—the impression of a fading and diminishing concern. 1964 November, P. F. Winding, “Re-shaping the LMR's North Western Line - 2”, in Modern Railways, page 346:
   • She's gotten herself on a slippery slope to being dismissed.
2. (broadly) A logical fallacy in which a party asserts that a particular result will probably follow from a given decision or circumstance, without necessarily providing any rational argument for the likelihood of the assumed consequence.

Forms

Relateds

tipping point · point of no return · negative feedback · snowball effect · domino effect · vicious circle

Synonyms

thin edge of the wedge · slippy slope · thin end of the wedge

Translations (17)

yue 滑坡謬誤 /滑坡谬误 (argument that follows a chain of events to some conclusion) · fr pente glissante (chain of events) · yue 滑坡 (chain of events) · pl równia pochyła (chain of events) · fr pente savonneuse (chain of events) · ka ციცაბო დაღმართი (chain of events) · sv sluttande plan (argument that follows a chain of events to some conclusion) · fi kalteva pinta (chain of events) · de Dammbruchargument (argument that follows a chain of events to some conclusion) · ru ско́льзкий путь (chain of events) · cmn 滑坡謬誤 /滑坡谬误 (argument that follows a chain of events to some conclusion) · sv sluttande plan (chain of events) · pl argument równi pochyłej (argument that follows a chain of events to some conclusion) · hu csúszós lejtő (chain of events) · cmn 滑坡 (chain of events) · fi kaltevan pinnan argumentti (argument that follows a chain of events to some conclusion) · ru ско́льзкая доро́жка (chain of events)