grip vs slack

grip

noun
  • A small ditch or trench; a channel to carry off water or other liquid; a drain. 

  • A person responsible for handling equipment on the set. 

  • An apparatus attached to a car for clutching a traction cable. 

  • A lot of something. 

  • A small travelling-bag or gripsack. 

  • A helpful, interesting, admirable, or inspiring person. 

  • Control, power or mastery over someone or something; a tenacious grasp; a holding fast. 

  • A channel cut through a grass verge (especially for the purpose of draining water away from the highway). 

  • A hold or way of holding, particularly with the hand. 

  • A long time. 

  • As much as one can hold in a hand; a handful. 

  • A handle or other place to grip. 

  • A device for grasping or holding fast to something. 

  • Assistance; help or encouragement. 

  • A visual component on a window etc. enabling it to be resized and/or moved. 

verb
  • Of an emotion or situation: to have a strong effect upon. 

  • To firmly hold the attention of. 

  • To take hold of, particularly with the hand. 

  • To trench; to drain. 

slack

noun
  • A tidal marsh or shallow that periodically fills and drains. 

  • Unconditional listening attention given by client to patient. 

  • A temporary speed restriction where track maintenance or engineering work is being carried out at a particular place. 

  • The part of anything that hangs loose, having no strain upon it. 

  • Small coal; coal dust. 

  • A valley, or small, shallow dell. 

adv
  • Slackly. 

adj
  • Moderately warm. 

  • Vulgar; sexually explicit, especially in dancehall music. 

  • Not active or busy, successful, or violent. 

  • Excess; surplus to requirements. 

  • Lax; not tense; not firmly extended. 

  • Lacking diligence or care; not earnest or eager. 

  • Lax. 

  • Moderate in speed. 

  • Weak; not holding fast. 

verb
  • To slacken. 

  • To lose cohesion or solidity by a chemical combination with water; to slake. 

How often have the words grip and slack occurred in a corpus of books? (source: Google Ngram Viewer )