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adjective
1.
not working or active; unemployed; doing nothing: idle workers.
2.
not spent or filled with activity: idle hours.
3.
not in use or operation; not kept busy: idle machinery.
4.
habitually doing nothing or avoiding work; lazy.
5.
EXPANDof no real worth, importance, or significance: idle talk.
verb (used without object)
10.
to pass time doing nothing.
11.
to move, loiter, or saunter aimlessly: to idle along the avenue.
12.
(of a machine, engine, or mechanism) to operate at a low speed, disengaged from the load.
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Idle away
is always a great word to know.
So is slumgullion. Does it mean:
| a stew of meat, vegetables, potatoes, etc. |
| a printed punctuation mark (‽), available only in some typefaces, designed to combine the question mark (?) and the exclamation point (!), indicating a mixture of query and interjection, as after a rhetorical question. |
verb (used with object)
13.
to pass (time) doing nothing (often followed by away): to idle away the afternoon.
14.
to cause (a person) to be idle: The strike idled many workers.
15.
to cause (a machine, engine, or mechanism) to idle: I waited in the car while idling the engine.
noun
16.
the state or quality of being idle.
17.
the state of a machine, engine, or mechanism that is idling: a cold engine that stalls at idle.
Origin:
before 900; 1915–20 for def. 12; Middle English, Old English īdel (adj.) empty, trifling, vain, useless; cognate with German eitel
before 900; 1915–20 for def. 12; Middle English, Old English īdel (adj.) empty, trifling, vain, useless; cognate with German eitel
Related forms
i·dle·ness, noun
i·dly, adverb
o·ver·i·dle, adjective
o·ver·i·dle·ness, noun
o·ver·i·dly, adverb
EXPANDSynonyms
1. sluggish. Idle, indolent, lazy, slothful apply to a person who is not active. To be idle is to be inactive or not working at a job. The word is sometimes derogatory, but not always, since one may be relaxing temporarily or may be idle through necessity: pleasantly idle on a vacation; to be idle because one is unemployed or because supplies are lacking. The indolent person is naturally disposed to avoid exertion: indolent and slow in movement; an indolent and contented fisherman. The lazy person is averse to exertion or work, and especially to continued application; the word is usually derogatory: too lazy to earn a living; incurably lazy. Slothful denotes a reprehensible unwillingness to carry one's share of the burden: so slothful as to be a burden on others. 5. worthless, trivial, trifling. 7. wasteful. 11. See loiter. 13. waste.
1. sluggish. Idle, indolent, lazy, slothful apply to a person who is not active. To be idle is to be inactive or not working at a job. The word is sometimes derogatory, but not always, since one may be relaxing temporarily or may be idle through necessity: pleasantly idle on a vacation; to be idle because one is unemployed or because supplies are lacking. The indolent person is naturally disposed to avoid exertion: indolent and slow in movement; an indolent and contented fisherman. The lazy person is averse to exertion or work, and especially to continued application; the word is usually derogatory: too lazy to earn a living; incurably lazy. Slothful denotes a reprehensible unwillingness to carry one's share of the burden: so slothful as to be a burden on others. 5. worthless, trivial, trifling. 7. wasteful. 11. See loiter. 13. waste.
Antonyms
1. busy, industrious. 5. important, worthwhile.
1. busy, industrious. 5. important, worthwhile.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source
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Link To idle away
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
idle
O.E. idel "empty, void, useless," common W.Gmc. (cf. O.S. idal, O.Fris. idel "empty, worthless," O.Du. idil, Ger. eitel "vain, useless, mere, pure"), of unknown origin. Idle threats preserves original sense; meaning "lazy" is c.1300. The verb sense of "running slowly and steadily without transmitting
EXPANDpower" (as a motor) first recorded 1916.
COLLAPSE
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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