slow-down
Also slowdown.
[f. slow v. + down adv.]
The action or process of slowing down; an instance of slowing down; spec. (a) U.S., a form of industrial protest in which employees work at a deliberately slow pace; (b) an economic recession, a decline in productivity or demand. Also attrib.
| 1897 Pall Mall Mag. Sept. 77 Each slow-down caused delay of one minute. 1937 Daily Progress (Charlottesville, Va.) 16 Apr. 1/5 An official of the U.A.W.A. said the objective of workers in a slow-down was to ‘try to see how little they can do without actually stopping work entirely’. 1939 Sun (Baltimore) 10 Jan. 16/3 The slow-down strike was called off late today. 1942 J. Steinbeck Moon is Down v. 70 ‘I think I fixed the mine for a while.’ ‘What's your trouble?’..‘Oh, the usual thing with me—the slow-down and a wrecked dump car.’ 1944 Sun (Baltimore) 28 Oct. 12/1 Low-quoted stocks..came out in blocks running to 33,000 shares and propped volume, although slowdowns were plentiful. 1950 Ibid. 7 Feb. 7/4 Helmstedt, Germany, checkpoint for the Russians' off-again, on-again ‘slowdown’ of Berlin-bound highway traffic. 1953 Encounter Nov. 70/1 In dozens of factories there were slow-downs..or sit-down strikes. 1957 Economist 28 Dec. 1132/1 At least 5,000 employees in lead-zinc mines and smelters..have lost their jobs this year... The slow-down extends even to the largest and most diversified producers. 1969 Nature 19 Apr. 218/2 The search will now be on for further eccentric behaviour in..the Crab Nebula pulsar which has the shortest period and the fastest slowdown rate of all. 1969 Guardian 2 Oct. 12/1 Has the Government any plans to protect Britain from a slowdown? 1973 Nature 3 Aug. 260/1 The observed evolutionary slowdown in higher primates may simply be the consequence of progressive prolongation of their generation time. 1977 New Yorker 24 Oct. 79/2 The mess⁓hall workers staged a work slowdown. 1977 J. W. Kendrick Understanding Productivity iv. 35 The factors explaining the 1966–69 slowdown also help to explain why productivity advance recovered..during the final complete subperiod. 1978 Sci. Amer. July 28/2 Energy is required, for example, to accelerate the vehicle from traffic stops and slowdowns, to climb hills and to overcome the rolling resistance of the tires. 1980 A. Coppel Hastings Conspiracy xxviii. 184 The switchboard operators are starting a slow-down over wages. 1981 Washington Star 14 Jan. f4/2 The University of the District of Columbia barely overcame the visitors' slow-down tactics and escaped with a bizarre 28–27 victory last night at D.C. Armory. |