Etymograph

English

sleech

Sleech comes from Old English *sliċ ‘mud, sludge’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *sleyg- ‘to slide, be slippery’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sleyg-1‘to slide, be slippery’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*slikiz1‘mud, slush’reconstructed
  3. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*sliki1reconstructed
  4. Old Englishc. 450–1150*sliċ1‘mud, sludge’reconstructed
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500sliche1
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1970sleech1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English sleech
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1970, Manning, P. I.: “The physical nature and engineering properties of the sleech…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*sleyg-Wiktionary, English sleech‘to slide, be slippery’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*slikizWiktionary, English sleech‘mud, slush’reconstructed
  3. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*slikiWiktionary, English sleechreconstructed
  4. Old Englishc. 450–1150*sliċWiktionary, English sleech‘mud, sludge’reconstructed
  5. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500slicheWiktionary, English sleech
  6. Englishearliest quotation 1970sleechWiktionary, English sleech. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1970, Manning, P. I.: “The physical nature and engineering properties of the sleech…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *sleyg- ‘to slide, be slippery’

slight, 4 more

through Old English *sliċ ‘mud, sludge’

slick, 1 more

Today it means

noun Thick, soft mud that was left behind by flowing water, usually alongside riverbeds or shorelines.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “sleech”. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *sleyg- / sleech

Shirt and support for this word