Word.ws English Dictionary

salami slicing

Syllables: sa·la·mi slic·ingUK/səˈlɑːmi ˈslaɪsɪŋ/US/səˈlɑmi ˈslaɪsɪŋ/

salami slicing noun: the achievement of a large change by incrementally asking for small concessions. Also the present participle and gerund of salami slice.

Noun

salami slicing (uncountable)

  1. (idiomatic) The achievement of a large change by incrementally asking for small concessions.
    • Salami slicing is a way to make progress under conditions of low trust. The tactic works best if begun with issues of low importance to the opponents. Salami slicing may be useful early in a negotiation against opponents facing a deadline.1995, David Churchman, Negotiation: Process, Tactics, Theory, →ISBN, page 46
    • Of course, the danger of salami slicing is that opponents of change will use it against those who want meaningful reform.2011, Joseph H. Boyett, Getting Things Done in Washington, →ISBN, page 151
  2. (idiomatic) The publication of multiple (usually very similar) papers based on a single piece of research.
    • No research has investigated whether 'salami slicing' may also occur in publications presenting results from pooled analyses of clinical trials.2012, Depression: New Insights for the Healthcare Professional, →ISBN
    • The intent of salami slicing usually is to increase the number of publications attributable to an author.2015, Marilyn H. Oermann, Judith C. Hays, Writing for Publication in Nursing, →ISBN, page 139
  3. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see salami, slice.

Also used as

salami slicing is also the present participle and gerund of salami slice.

Examples of salami slicing in a sentence

  • At that time there were short-term expedients, salami slicing and budgets being cut without regard to the impact on quality.2012, Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Health Committee, Public expenditure: thirteenth report of session 2010-12, Vol. 1...
  • Someone (Michael Kinsley, I think) called all this, "salami slicing." He was right, of course, it often is salami slicing.2013, Tom Kratman, A Desert Called Peace, →ISBN:
  • China's behavior suggests the use of “salami slicing” to gradually settle its claims in the Near Seas.2014, Robert Haddick, Fire on the Water: China, America, and the Future of the Pacific, →ISBN:
  • From the author's viewpoint, salami slicing may also be counterproductive.2017, David H. Foster, A Concise Guide to Communication in Science and Engineering, →ISBN:

Origin of salami slicing

From the way a deli will slice salami or similar meat in small slices in order to fill a sandwich at lowest cost.

Words that rhyme with salami slicing

Questions about salami slicing

What does salami slicing mean?
Salami slicing means the achievement of a large change by incrementally asking for small concessions.
How do you use salami slicing in a sentence?
At that time there were short-term expedients, salami slicing and budgets being cut without regard to the impact on quality.
What part of speech is salami slicing?
Salami slicing is a noun.
How do you pronounce salami slicing?
Salami slicing is pronounced /səˈlɑːmi ˈslaɪsɪŋ/ (UK).

Words near salami slicing in the dictionary

  1. salami publications
  2. salami publishing
  3. salami slice
  4. salami sliced
  5. salami slices
  6. salami slicing
  7. salami tactics
  8. salami technique
  9. salami techniques
  10. salami-slice
  11. salami-sliced

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: salami slicing (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Cite this entry: “salami slicing.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/salami_slicing. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.