After getting downsized he started off on a clean slate and started a business working out of a home office.
Source: tatoeba (29692)
Slate
/sleɪt/
Synonyms for "slate" (114 found)
Ranked by relevance and common usage.
Closest matches (23)
Strong matches (34)
Related words (57)
Choosing the right synonym
- Closest matches in this entry: absentee ballot, agenda, argillite, arrange, asphalt.
- Sentence evidence is available for slate, so synonym choice can be checked against real usage rather than a flat word list.
- Ranking signals come from moby, derived_reverse, opengloss, wordnet, and related lexical sources.
Synonym selection checklist
- Match the part of speech before comparing meanings.
- Check whether the synonym changes intensity, formality, or emotional tone.
- Read the replacement inside the full sentence, not just beside "slate".
- Prefer the clearest word over the most unusual word when writing for speed or comprehension.
When not to replace "slate"
Keep "slate" when the sentence already sounds natural, when a synonym would add unintended emphasis, or when readers need the most familiar wording. A synonym should clarify or sharpen the message, not simply make the sentence look more varied.
If two options seem close, choose the one that best matches the audience and purpose of the sentence.
Replacement workflow
1. Preserve meaning
Choose a synonym only if it keeps the core idea of "slate" intact in the sentence you are editing.
2. Tune tone
Check whether the replacement sounds more formal, casual, emotional, technical, or forceful than the original word.
3. Re-read context
Read the full sentence after the swap. Keep the synonym only when the sentence becomes clearer or more precise.
Review note: Synonym lists are ranked with lexical data and reviewed for practical writing value. Use the comparison notes, sentence evidence, and source labels together; a high-ranking synonym can still be wrong when the audience, register, or grammar changes.
Final fit check
After choosing a replacement for "slate", read the sentence once for meaning and once for rhythm. The best synonym should feel natural in the full sentence, not only accurate in a word list.
If the synonym makes the sentence slower, vaguer, or more dramatic than intended, keep "slate" or choose a simpler alternative from the closest-match group.
Related word relations
OpenGloss and ConceptNet supply richer edges like generalizations, collocations, and derivations.
More general
20 entriesShowing 16 of 20 words.
More specific
14 entriesappointmentberateblackboardchalkboarddenouncegneisspanphylliterosterscene slateshortlistslamtake slatetime slot
Collocations
11 entriesslate a dateslate boardslate for publicationslate for releaseslate of candidatesslate quarryslate roofslate slabslate the sceneslate the takeslate tile
Inflections
3 entriesDerivations
3 entriesTranslations
59 translations across 35 languages.
Arabic
1 entries- أَرْدْوَاز noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
Basque
1 entries- arbela noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
Bulgarian
1 entries- шиста noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
Catalan
2 entries- llicorella noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
- pissarra noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
Chinese Mandarin
1 entries- 板岩 noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
Czech
1 entries- břidlice noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
Dutch
2 entries- lei noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
- leisteen noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
Finnish
4 entries- liuske noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
- liuskekivi noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
- pala liuskekiveä noun (flake or piece of certain types of stone that tend to cleave into thin layers)
- saviliuske noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
French
1 entries- ardoise noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
German
4 entries- Plattenschiefer noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
- Schiefer noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
- Schieferplatte noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
- Schieferstein noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
Greek
1 entries- σχιστόλιθος noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
Hindi
1 entries- स्लेट noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
Hungarian
3 entries- agyagpala noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
- pala noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
- zsindelypala noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
Irish
2 entries- scláta noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
- slinn noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
Italian
1 entries- ardesia noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
Japanese
1 entries- 粘板岩 noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
Korean
1 entries- 점판암 noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
Luxembourgish
1 entries- Lee noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
Macedonian
1 entries- шкри́лец noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
Māori
1 entries- mākoha noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
Norman
2 entries- ardouaise noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
- dardaise noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
Norwegian
2 entries- skifer noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
- skiferstein noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
Persian
1 entries- پلمه noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
Polish
1 entries- łupek noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
Portuguese
1 entries- ardósia noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
Romanian
1 entries- ardezie noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
Russian
3 entries- аспи́д noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
- аспи́дный сла́нец noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
- ши́фер noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
Slovak
1 entries- bridlica noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
Spanish
2 entries- pizarra noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
- empizarrar verb ((transitive) to cover (a building, or part of a building) with slates; (intransitive) to cover a building or part of a building with slates)
Swedish
1 entries- skiffer noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
Turkish
4 entries- arduvaz noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
- dam taşı noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
- kayağan taşı noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
- kayrak noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
Ukrainian
2 entries- лупа́к noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
- сла́нець noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
Volapük
1 entries- slet noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
Walloon
1 entries- schaye noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
Welsh
2 entries- llech noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
- llechfaen noun (fine-grained homogeneous sedimentary rock)
Sample sentences
36 total sentences available.
The grass was left long and weedy in the slate walk, and very often he wasn't cutting the grass on the other side of the hedge by the road at all.
Source: tatoeba (51381)
Let's scrap everything and start over again with a clean slate.
Source: tatoeba (51661)
Let's throw it away and start over with a clean slate.
Source: tatoeba (54342)
Showing 4 of 36 available sentences.
Common questions
What are the closest synonyms for "slate"?
Closest matches include absentee ballot, agenda, argillite, arrange, asphalt.
How should I check whether a synonym fits "slate"?
Compare the replacement against real sentence context. This entry includes sample sentences so you can check tone, grammar, and meaning before swapping words.