to make something slow or slower; to slow down or impede movement.
From be- (prefix) + slow (from Old English slaw, originally meaning 'dull' or 'sluggish'). The prefix creates a causative verb meaning to cause slowness.
Slow originally meant 'dull-witted' in Old English before it meant 'moving slowly'—the meanings merged because both imply a lack of speed or quickness, whether mental or physical.
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