Meaning & use
snail pace
Last updated
UK/ˈsneɪl peɪs/
US/ˈsneɪl peɪs/
Meaning
nounsingularfigurative
A very slow speed or rate of progress, often one that is annoying.
Grammar: Singular and usually after at: at a snail pace.
Patterns
- at a snail pace
- progress at a snail pace
Traffic crawled along at a snail pace all morning.
The project is moving at a snail pace.
We walked at a snail pace because of the heavy bags.
Common combinations
- at a snail pace
- The line moved at a snail pace.
- crawl at a snail pace
- The cars crawled at a snail pace through the tunnel.
- progress at a snail pace
- The talks progressed at a snail pace.
- move at a snail pace
- Work on the road seems to move at a snail pace.
- snail pace of change
- Many people are frustrated by the snail pace of change.
Synonyms and how they differ
- crawl
- A single word, used as a verb or noun, that gives the same feeling of slowness, but is plainer.
- slow speed
- Is neutral and gives no judgment, whereas snail pace often shows impatience.
- glacial pace
- Is even slower and more dramatic, suggesting something moves like ice.
Opposites
breakneck speedrapid pace
Word family
- snail noun
- a slow soft-bodied creature with a shell
- snail mail noun
- ordinary post, called slow compared with email
- pace noun
- the speed at which something moves
Commonly confused: snail pace or snail's pace?
snail pace vs snail's pace
Snail's pace is the more traditional form of the same idiom, and the one most style guides prefer.
Practice
The repairs are going ahead at a ___, and residents are losing patience.
Choose one answer.
At a snail pace means very slowly, which explains the lost patience. The other options all suggest speed.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “snail pace”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.
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