glide (glīd)

v., glid·ed, glid·ing, glides.

v.intr.

1. To move in a smooth, effortless manner: a submarine gliding through the water. See synonyms at slide.
2. To move silently and furtively.
3. To occur or pass imperceptibly.
4. To fly without propulsion. Used of an aircraft.
5. Music. To blend one tone into the next; slur.
6. Linguistics. To articulate a glide in speech.

v.tr.
To cause to move or pass smoothly, silently, or imperceptibly.

n.

1. The act of gliding.
2. Music. A slur.
3. Linguistics.
   1. The transitional sound produced by passing from the articulatory position of one speech sound to that of another.
   2. See semivowel.

[Middle English gliden, from Old English glīdan.]

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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

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