quicksand

English

Etymology

From Middle English quyksande, from Old English cwecesand (“quicksand”), equivalent to quick (“living”) +‎ sand. Cognate with Swedish kvicksand (“quicksand”), Icelandic kviksandur, kviksyndi (“quicksand”). More at quick, sand.

Noun

quicksand (countable and uncountable, plural quicksands)

1. Wet sand that appears firm but in which things readily sink, often found near rivers or coasts.

   My feet were firmly lodged in the quicksand, and the more I struggled the more I sank into it.

2. (figuratively) Anything that pulls one down or buries one.

   the quicksands of youth

Synonyms

• syrtis, syrt (archaic)

Translations

type of sand

• Arabic: رِمَال مُتَحَرِّكَة f pl (rimāl mutaḥarrika)
• Bengali: চোরাবালি (bn) (cōrabali)
• Bulgarian: подвижен пясък m (podvižen pjasǎk)
• Catalan: sorramoll m, sorra movedissa f
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 流沙 (zh) (liúshā)

• Czech: tekutý písek m
• Danish: kviksand (da)
• Dutch: drijfzand (nl) n
• Esperanto: movsablo, flusablo
• Estonian: vesiliiv
• Finnish: juoksuhiekka (fi)
• French: sables mouvants (fr) m pl
• Galician: areas movedizas f
• Georgian: ფხვიერი მიწა (pxvieri mic̣a), მცურავი ქვიშა (mcuravi kviša)
• German: Treibsand (de) m
• Greek: κινούμενη άμμος (el) f (kinoúmeni ámmos)
• Hungarian: futóhomok (hu), föveny (hu), süppedő, mocsaras talaj
• Irish: gaineamh súraic m, gaineamh beo m, gaineamh reatha m
• Italian: sabbie mobili f pl
• Japanese: 流砂 (ja) (りゅうしゃ, ryūsha)
• Korean: 유사(流砂) (ko) (yusa)
• Macedonian: жив песок m (živ pesok)
• Maori: ōi
• Norman: mouoilliéthe f (Jersey)
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: kvikksand m

  Nynorsk: kvikksand m, kviksand m

• Old English: cwecesand n, sandġeweorp n, sandrid n
• Ottoman Turkish: باتاق (batak)
• Persian: ماسه بادی (mâsse bâdi)
• Plautdietsch: Sauntloch n
• Polish: kurzawka (pl) f, ruchome piaski nvir
• Portuguese: areia movediça (pt) f
• Russian: зыбу́чие пески́ (ru) m pl (zybúčije peskí), зыбучий песок (ru) (zybučij pesok), зыбун (ru) (zybun)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Roman: živi pijesak m

• Spanish: arenas movedizas f pl
• Swedish: kvicksand (sv) c
• Tagalog: kuminoy
• Telugu: దొంగయిసుక (doṅgayisuka)
• Thai: ทรายดูด (saai-dùut)
• Welsh: traeth gwyllt m, traeth byw m