“quicksands” is a form of
quicksand
/ˈkwɪkˌsænd/ noun
Forms quicksands
- noun 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.”
- noun (figuratively) Anything that metaphorically pulls one down or buries one; a treacherous, risky danger “the quicksands of youth”
Synonyms
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.
Webster’s 1913
- noun Sand easily moved or readily yielding to pressure; especially, a deep mass of loose or moving sand mixed with water, sometimes found at the mouth of a river or along some coasts, and very dangerous, from the difficulty of extricating a person who begins sinking into it. Life hath quicksands, -- Life hath snares! Longfellow.
Sources: Wiktionary · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “quicksand”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details