idle
idle is defined in Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1913) with 7 senses, and appears in Roget's Thesaurus (1911) with 38 related terms. The full text of each entry is reproduced verbatim below.
Definitions
- 1.Down their idle weapons dropped. Milton. This idle story became important. Macaulay.
- 2.Not called into active service; not turned to appropriate use; unemployed; as, idle hours. The idle spear and shield were high uphing. Milton.
- 3.Not employed; unoccupied with business; inactive; doing nothing; as, idle workmen. Why stand ye here all the day idle Matt. xx.
- 4.4. Given rest and ease; averse to labor or employment; lazy; slothful; as, an idle fellow.
- 5.Light-headed; foolish. [Obs.] Ford. Idle pulley (Mach.), a pulley that rests upon a belt to tighten it; a pulley that only guides a belt and is not used to transmit power. -- Idle wheel (Mach.), a gear wheel placed between two others, to transfer motion from one to the other without changing the direction of revolution. -- In idle, in vain. [Obs.] "God saith, thou shalt not take the name of thy Lord God in idle." Chaucer. -- Idle, Indolent, Lazy. A propensity to inaction is expressed by each of these words; they differ in the cause and degree of this characteristic. Indolent denotes an habitual love to ease, a settled dislike of movement or effort; idle is opposed to busy, and denotes a dislike of continuous exertion. Lazy is a stronger and more contemptuous term than indolent.
- 6.To lose or spend time in inaction, or without being employed in business. Shak.
- 7.To spend in idleness; to waste; to consume; -- often followed by away; as, to idle away an hour a day.
Source: Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913 edition (public domain, via GCIDE / Project Gutenberg).
Synonyms
Synonyms (Webster's 1913)
- frivolous
- futile
- inactive
- indolent
- ineffectual
- slothful
- sluggish
- trifling
- unemployed
- unimportant
- unoccupied
- unprofitable
- useless
- vacant
- vain
Source: Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913 edition (public domain, via GCIDE / Project Gutenberg).
Related terms (Roget's 1911)
- away
- big
- calm
- convenience
- deliberate
- deliberately
- ease
- end
- hanging
- haste
- have
- heavy
- holiday
- hour
- hours
- hurry
- inaction
- leisure
- leisurely
- loose
- man
- master
- move
- quiet
- relaxation
- repose
- rest
- rush
- slow
- slowly
- spare
- take
- the
- time
- undue
- vacant
- while
- without
Source: Roget's Thesaurus, 1911 edition (public domain, via Project Gutenberg eBook #10681).
Related questions
Reverse-dictionary questions
Definition-first questions whose answer is idle.
- What is down their idle weapons dropped. Milton. This idle story became important. Macaulay called?
- What is not called into active service; not turned to appropriate use; unemployed; as, idle hours. The idle spear and shield were high uphing. Milton called?
- What is not employed; unoccupied with business; inactive; doing nothing; as, idle workmen. Why stand ye here all the day idle Matt. xx called?
- What is 4. Given rest and ease; averse to labor or employment; lazy; slothful; as, an idle fellow called?
- What is to lose or spend time in inaction, or without being employed in business. Shak called?
- What is to spend in idleness; to waste; to consume; -- often followed by away; as, to idle away an hour a day called?
Sources
- Definitions: Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913 edition (public domain, via GCIDE / Project Gutenberg).
- Synonyms: Roget's Thesaurus, 1911 edition (public domain, via Project Gutenberg eBook #10681).
- Canonical URL: https://worddirectanswers.com/word/idle
- Steward: Jason Burns