idle

i•dle

[[t]ˈaɪd l[/t]] adj. i•dler, i•dlest,

1) not working or active; unemployed; doing nothing

2) not filled with activity:

idle hours[/ex]

3) not in use or operation:

idle machinery[/ex]

4) habitually doing nothing or avoiding work; lazy

5) of no real worth, importance, or purpose:

idle talk[/ex]

6) having no basis or reason; baseless; groundless:

idle fears[/ex]

7) frivolous; vain:

idle pleasures[/ex]

8) meaningless; senseless:

idle threats[/ex]

9) to pass time doing nothing

10) to move or loiter aimlessly

11) aum mac (of a machine, engine, or mechanism) to operate at a low speed, disengaged from the load

12) to pass (time) doing nothing (often fol. by away):

to idle away the afternoon[/ex]

13) to cause to be idle:

The strike idled many workers[/ex]

14) cvb mac to cause (a machine, engine, or mechanism) to idle

15) the state or quality of being idle

16) aum mac the state of a machine, engine, or mechanism that is idling:

an engine at idle[/ex]

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Etymology: bef. 900; ME, OE īdel empty, trifling, useless, c. OFris īdel, OS īdal, OHG ītal i′dle•ness, n. i′dler, n. i′dly, adv. syn: idle, indolent, lazy, slothful apply to a person who is not active. idle means to be inactive or not working at a job; it is not necessarily derogatory: pleasantly idle on a vacation. indolent means naturally disposed to avoid exertion: an indolent and contented fisherman. lazy means averse to exertion or work, and esp. to continued application; the word is usu. derogatory: too lazy to earn a living. slothful denotes a reprehensible unwillingness to do one's share; it describes a person who is slow-moving and lacking in energy: The heat made the workers slothful. See also loiter