SLIT (slitting)

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

Irregular inflected form: slitting   

 Dictionary entry overview: What does slit mean? 

• SLIT (noun)
  The noun SLIT has 4 senses:

1. a long narrow opening

2. obscene terms for female genitals

3. a depression scratched or carved into a surface

4. a narrow fissure

  Familiarity information: SLIT used as a noun is uncommon.

• SLIT (verb)
  The verb SLIT has 2 senses:

1. make a clean cut through

2. cut a slit into

  Familiarity information: SLIT used as a verb is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• SLIT (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A long narrow opening

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("slit" is a kind of...):

opening (a vacant or unobstructed space that is man-made)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "slit"):

jag (a slit in a garment that exposes material of a different color underneath; used in Renaissance clothing)

slot (a small slit (as for inserting a coin or depositing mail))

vent (a slit in a garment (as in the back seam of a jacket))

Derivation:

slit (cut a slit into)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Obscene terms for female genitals

Classified under:

Nouns denoting body parts

Synonyms:

cunt; puss; pussy; slit; snatch; twat

Hypernyms ("slit" is a kind of...):

fanny; female genital organ; female genitalia; female genitals (external female sex organs)

Sense 3

Meaning:

A depression scratched or carved into a surface

Classified under:

Nouns denoting two and three dimensional shapes

Synonyms:

dent; incision; prick; scratch; slit

Hypernyms ("slit" is a kind of...):

depression; impression; imprint (a concavity in a surface produced by pressing)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "slit"):

score; scotch (a slight surface cut (especially a notch that is made to keep a tally))

Derivation:

slit (cut a slit into)

slit (make a clean cut through)

Sense 4

Meaning:

A narrow fissure

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural objects (not man-made)

Hypernyms ("slit" is a kind of...):

cleft; crack; crevice; fissure; scissure (a long narrow opening)

Derivation:

slit (cut a slit into)

• SLIT (verb)

Present simple: I / you / we / they slit    ... he / she / it slits   
Past simple: slit   
Past participle: slit   
-ing form: slitting   

Sense 1

Meaning:

Make a clean cut through

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Synonyms:

slice; slit

Context example:

slit her throat

Hypernyms (to "slit" is one way to...):

cut (separate with or as if with an instrument)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Something ----s something

Derivation:

slit (a depression scratched or carved into a surface)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Cut a slit into

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Context example:

slit the throat of the victim

Hypernyms (to "slit" is one way to...):

incise (make an incision into by carving or cutting)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Something ----s something

Derivation:

slit (a long narrow opening)

slit (a narrow fissure)

slit (a depression scratched or carved into a surface)

 Context examples 

They can only reenter the bloodstream if they’re able to pass through a tiny splenic structure called the interendothelial slit.

(How the spleen keeps blood healthy, NIH)

‘Look in here!’ said Mr. Rucastle, showing me a slit between two planks. ‘Is he not a beauty?’

(The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

I had closed the slit between the curtains as Milverton’s face had turned in our direction, but now I ventured very carefully to open it once more.

(The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

A long narrow slit or groove that divides an organ into lobes.

(Fissure, NCI Thesaurus)

The opening can be a small slit or a large opening that goes through the lip into the nose.

(Cleft Lip and Palate, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

I shall send for my clothes when I get to Longbourn; but I wish you would tell Sally to mend a great slit in my worked muslin gown before they are packed up.

(Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen)

The first ones had been caused by some one forcing an instrument through the slit between the sashes, and the second by the catch being pressed back.

(The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Yet it were madness to spring for that narrow slit with nought but the wet, smooth rock to cling to.

(The White Company, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

It had been fighting, and manifestly had had a savage opponent, for its throat was torn away, and its belly was slit open as if with a savage claw.

(Dracula, by Bram Stoker)

Many very respectable people make an honest living out of what are called sensation stories, said Jo, scratching gathers so energetically that a row of little slits followed her pin.

(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)