Slough - plus, why is “volunteer” a trending word?

[Merriam-Webster]( WORD OF THE DAY [April 28, 2017](#none) slough [Audio pronunciation]( verb | SLUFF Definition 1 : to [cast]( off or become cast off 2 : to crumble slowly and fall away 3 : to get rid of or discard as [irksome](, objectionable, or disadvantageous Scroll down for more about slough WORD GAMES AND QUIZZES: WEEKLY CHALLENGE [Name that Thing: Flower Edition]( Can you correctly identify these flowers? [PLAY NOW]( Nailed this quiz? We have plenty more to try! [TAKE ME THERE [>]]( Plus: [SEE WHAT LOOKUPS ARE TRENDING NOW! [>]]( Did You Know? There are two verbs spelled slough in English, as well as two nouns, and both sets have different pronunciations. The [first noun](, referring to a swamp or a discouraged state of mind, is pronounced to rhyme with either blue or cow; it derives from Old English slōh, which is akin to a Middle High German slouche, meaning "ditch." Its [related verb](, which can mean "to plod through mud," has the same pronunciation. The [second noun](, pronounced to rhyme with cuff, refers to the shed skin of a snake (as well as anything else that has been cast off). Its [related verb]( describes the action of shedding or eliminating something, just like a snake sheds its skin. This slough derives from Middle English slughe and is distantly related to slÅ«ch, a Middle High German word meaning "snakeskin." Examples of SLOUGH "The glue [that affixes the tiling to the hull] is exposed to a wide variety of environmental conditions, including big temperature swings as well as the pressures of operating at 1,000 feet beneath the surface. The friction of moving underwater tugs at the coating, and running into objects contributes to it gradually sloughing off." — Kyle Mizokami, Popular Mechanics, 7 Mar. 2017 "After Monday’s [landslide], the Department of Public Works cut down two trees on the hillside, removed a loose mass of dirt that was unstable and reopened the road. But a significant chunk of the hillside sloughed off in the wee hours of Wednesday morning, with a valley resident alerting people that it had closed as early as 12:30 a.m." — Samantha Kimmey, Point Reyes Light (Marin County, California), 9 Mar. 2017 Test Your Vocabulary Fill in the blanks to complete a verb that means "to cast off in thin scales or layers": _ _ f _ li _ te. [VIEW THE ANSWER [>]]( WORD GAMES Typeshift—Our new daily word game Anagram puzzles meet word search. A new, more difficult puzzle every day of the week starting with an easy puzzle on Monday and working to a deviously hard puzzle on Sunday. [PLAY NOW [>]]( MORE WORD FUN: [WORD GAMES [>]]( [TRENDING NOW [>]]( [WORDS AT PLAY [>]]( FOLLOW US: [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [YouTube]( [Instagram]( [Pinterest]( SHARE: [Facebook][Facebook]( [Twitter][Twitter]( [View this email in a web browser]( You are receiving this email because you opted in to receive the Merriam-Webster Word of the Day. [Unsubscribe from Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day]( [Manage your subscription settings]( Merriam-Webster, Inc. 47 Federal Street P.O. Box 281 Springfield, MA 01102 [www.merriam-webster.com](