Va'al wrote:Actually, the 'abusive' is part of what the word means in a non personal context ('to slag someone off'). When directed at a woman, it's yet another term for 'promiscuous'.
From the Oxford English Dictionary:
(e) A prostitute or promiscuous woman; a slattern.
Usage:
1958 N.Z. Listener 10 Oct. 6/3 A ‘slag’ is a white girl who lives with or is friendly with coloured people of either sex.
1959 Streetwalker iv. 87 It's my pride he hurts, with his little slags.
1966 New Statesman 23 Dec. 934/2 You have to wear glasses these days if you don't want to be called a slag.
1970 ‘D. Craig’ Young Men may Die x. 72 Does anyone care what happens to a slag?
1973 J. Seabrook Loneliness 185, I went out with a girl called Angie, who was really a bit of a slag.
Thank you for the enlightenment. I'm not familiar with the the word "slag" in that context. Those examples seem pretty dated, but I'm no expert on which slang is in right now.