slick

/slɪk/

//slɪk// adj

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"slick" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“slick” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #11,120 in English word frequency and used as an adjective.

#11,120
frequency rank, English
5
letters
8
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Slippery or smooth due to a covering of liquid; often used to describe appearances.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

slick vs suck
60% similar
slick vs slip
60% similar
slick vs slim
60% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for slick
PropertyValue
Headwordslick
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/slɪk/
Letters5
Frequency rank#11,120
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “slick” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). slick lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for slick is 5 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /slɪk/. Corpus data places it at rank #11,120 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 6 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for slick, with forms such as "lsick", "silck", and "slcik". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "suck", "slip", "slim", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English slicke, slike, slyke, from Old English slīc (“sleek, smooth; crafty, cunning, slick”), from Proto-Germanic *slīkaz (“sleek, smooth”), from Proto-Indo-European *sleyg-, *sleyǵ- (“to glide, smooth, spread”). Akin to Dutch sluik, dialectal … The correct English form is slick, spelled S-L-I-C-K.

Definition

  1. 1
    Slippery or smooth due to a covering of liquid; often used to describe appearances.
  2. 2
    Sleek; smooth.
  3. 3
    Appearing expensive or sophisticated.
  4. 4
    Superficially convincing but actually untrustworthy.
  5. 5
    Clever, making an apparently hard task look easy.
  6. 6
    Extraordinarily great or special.

Etymology

From Middle English slicke, slike, slyke, from Old English slīc (“sleek, smooth; crafty, cunning, slick”), from Proto-Germanic *slīkaz (“sleek, smooth”), from Proto-Indo-European *sleyg-, *sleyǵ- (“to glide, smooth, spread”). Akin to Dutch sluik, dialectal Dutch sleek (“even, smooth”), Old Norse slíkr (“sleek, smooth”), Old English slician (“to make sleek, smooth, or glossy”).

This word in other languages

resbaladizo(Español)glissant(Français)glitschig(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: lsick,silck,slcik,slicck,slickk,slikc,sllick,sslick

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of slick - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

lsick2silck2slcik2slicck1slickk1slikc2sllick1sslick1
Edit distance from "slick"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "slick"?
"slick" is spelled S-L-I-C-K. The IPA pronunciation is /slɪk/.
What does "slick" mean?
As an adjective, "slick" means: Slippery or smooth due to a covering of liquid; often used to describe appearances.
What words are commonly confused with "slick"?
"slick" is commonly confused with "suck", "slip", "slim". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "slick"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "slick" is /slɪk/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "slick"?
From Middle English slicke, slike, slyke, from Old English slīc (“sleek, smooth; crafty, cunning, slick”), from Proto-Germanic *slīkaz (“sleek, smooth”), from Proto-Indo-European *sleyg-, *sleyǵ- (“to glide, smooth, spread”). Akin to Dutch sluik, ... See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Using “slick”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is S-L-I-C-K - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /slɪk/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “suck” - see the side-by-side comparison. slick vs suck
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list