slippery slope
Where this leads
A slippery slope is a course of action that seems minor but allegedly leads to serious consequences.
The metaphor suggests that once you start sliding, you can't stop: Allowing this exception is a slippery slope toward abandoning the rule entirely.
In logic, "slippery slope" names a fallacy—arguing against something solely because it might lead to worse things, without demonstrating the steps are inevitable.
Exposure to harm
- perilSerious threat of harm
- hazardSource of potential harm
- precariousDangerously insecure
- threatIndication of potential harm
jeopardy · vulnerability · pitfall · treacherous · unstable · uncertain · gamble · exposure
Change through small steps
- gradualismPhilosophy of incremental change
- progressionSequential forward movement
- stepwiseProceeding by degrees
- cascadeSuccessive downward flow
domino effect · snowball effect · chain reaction · escalation · continuum · stages · erosion · creep
Reasoned case or dispute
- contentionAssertion or rivalry
- rhetoricArt of persuasive language
- discourseFormal communication on subjects
- rebuttalFormal response disputing claims
counterargument · refutation · polemic · persuasion · dialectic · controversy · wedge issue · precedent
Process of declining quality
- degradationDecline in condition
- erosionGradual wearing away
- descentDownward slope or lineage
- downfallSudden loss of power
regression · degeneration · moral decay · corrosion · unraveling · backsliding · collapse · devolution
Incorrectly identified reason
- appeal to fearPersuasion exploiting anxiety
- hasty generalizationConclusion from insufficient evidence
- logical errorFlaw in reasoning
- causal chainEvents triggering subsequent events
flawed reasoning · domino theory · thin end of the wedge · reductio ad absurdum · scaremongering · alarmism · overreach · exaggeration
danger
Exposure to harm
- perilSerious threat of harm
- hazardSource of potential harm
- precariousDangerously insecure
threat · jeopardy · vulnerability · pitfall · treacherous · unstable · uncertain · gamble · exposure · consequences
incrementalism
Change through small steps
- gradualismPhilosophy of incremental change
- progressionSequential forward movement
- stepwiseProceeding by degrees
cascade · domino effect · snowball effect · chain reaction · escalation · continuum · stages · erosion · creep · mission creep
argument
Reasoned case or dispute
- contentionAssertion or rivalry
- rhetoricArt of persuasive language
- discourseFormal communication on subjects
rebuttal · counterargument · refutation · polemic · persuasion · dialectic · controversy · wedge issue · precedent · cautionary tale
deterioration
Process of declining quality
- degradationDecline in condition
- erosionGradual wearing away
- descentDownward slope or lineage
downfall · regression · degeneration · moral decay · corrosion · unraveling · backsliding · collapse · devolution · downward spiral
false cause
Incorrectly identified reason
- appeal to fearPersuasion exploiting anxiety
- hasty generalizationConclusion from insufficient evidence
- logical errorFlaw in reasoning
flawed reasoning · causal chain · domino theory · thin end of the wedge · reductio ad absurdum · scaremongering · alarmism · overreach · exaggeration · worst-case scenario
- idiomstime flies, hit the sack, seize the day, ring a bell, break a leg
- bioethicsbioethics, medical ethics, genetic engineering, beneficence, non-maleficence
- rhetoricrhetoric, persuasion, oratory, argumentation, debate
- argument termsad hominem, evidence, straw man, proof, appeal to emotion
- debate tacticsexaggeration, appeal to authority, appeal to emotion, logical fallacy, straw man
- fallaciesstraw man, red herring, circular reasoning, ad hominem, fallacy
slippery slopesound argument
Logically valid reasoning
logical inference · evidence-based reasoning · logical conclusion · strong foundation · non sequitur
slippery slopefirm ground
Stable, unyielding surface
solid foundation · terra firma · bedrock · stable platform · sure footing
slippery slopevirtuous cycle
Self-perpetuating beneficial pattern
upward trajectory · upward spiral · steady climb · building momentum · sustainable growth
slope, slippery, slipping, sloping, slips, sloped, slopes, slippage, slipperiness