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Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

in·do·lent

Audio Help [in-dl-uh

nt] Pronunciation Key

–adjective

1.	having or showing a disposition to avoid exertion; slothful: an indolent person.

2.	Pathology. causing little or no pain; inactive or relatively benign: an indolent ulcer that is not painful and is slow to heal.

[Origin: 1655–65; < L indolent- (s. of indoléns), equiv. to in- in-³ + dolent- (s. of doléns) prp. of dolére to be pain-ful, be in pain; see dole², -ent

]

—Related forms

in·do·lent·ly, adverb

—Synonyms 1. slow, inactive, sluggish, torpid. See idle.

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
indolent

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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

in·do·lent Audio Help (ĭn'də-lənt) Pronunciation Key
adj.

1. Disinclined to exert oneself; habitually lazy. See Synonyms at lazy.
2. Conducive to inactivity or laziness; lethargic: humid, indolent weather.
3. Causing little or no pain: an indolent tumor.
4. Slow to heal, grow, or develop; inactive: an indolent ulcer.
1. Causing little or no pain: an indolent tumor.
2. Slow to heal, grow, or develop; inactive: an indolent ulcer.

[Late Latin indolēns, indolent-, painless : Latin in-, not; see in-¹ + Latin dolēns, present participle of dolēre, to feel pain.]

in'do·lent·ly adv.

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WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This

indolent
adjective
1.	disinclined to work or exertion; "faineant kings under whose rule the country languished"; "an indolent hanger-on"; "too lazy to wash the dishes"; "shiftless idle youth"; "slothful employees"; "the unemployed are not necessarily work-shy" [syn: faineant]
2.	(of tumors, e.g.) slow to heal or develop and usually painless; "an indolent ulcer"; "leprosy is an indolent infectious disease"

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

indolent

Ac"tive\, a. [F. actif, L. activus, fr. agere to act.]

1. Having the power or quality of acting; causing change; communicating action or motion; acting; -- opposed to passive, that receives; as, certain active principles; the powers of the mind.

2. Quick in physical movement; of an agile and vigorous body; nimble; as, an active child or animal.

Active and nervous was his gait. --Wordsworth.

3. In action; actually proceeding; working; in force; -- opposed to quiescent, dormant, or extinct; as, active laws; active hostilities; an active volcano.

4. Given to action; constantly engaged in action; energetic; diligent; busy; -- opposed to dull, sluggish, indolent, or inert; as, an active man of business; active mind; active zeal.

5. Requiring or implying action or exertion; -- opposed to sedentary or to tranquil; as, active employment or service; active scenes.

6. Given to action rather than contemplation; practical; operative; -- opposed to speculative or theoretical; as, an active rather than a speculative statesman.

7. Brisk; lively; as, an active demand for corn.

8. Implying or producing rapid action; as, an active disease; an active remedy.

9. (Gram.) (a) Applied to a form of the verb; -- opposed to passive. See Active voice, under Voice. (b) Applied to verbs which assert that the subject acts upon or affects something else; transitive. (c) Applied to all verbs that express action as distinct from mere existence or state.

Active capital, Active wealth, money, or property that may readily be converted into money.

Syn: Agile; alert; brisk; vigorous; nimble; lively; quick; sprightly; prompt; energetic.

Dictionary.com Word of the Day Archive - Cite This Source - Share This

indolent

indolent was Word of the Day on September 10, 1999.

Dictionary.com Word of the Day

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