stagnant
adjective
stag·nant
ˈstag-nənt 
1
a(1)
: not flowing in a current or stream
stagnant water
(2)
: without inflow and outflow
a stagnant pool
b
: stale
long disuse had made the air stagnant and foul—
Bram Stoker
Bram Stoker2
: not advancing or developing
a stagnant economy
stagnantly
adverb
Examples of stagnant in a Sentence
… many people who make their living in academia are reasonably well insulated from financial devastation. For most tenured faculty, the worst they are likely to experience is stagnant pay and deferred retirement.
—Andrew Delbanco, The New York Review of Books, 14 May 2009
"For adults, entertainment needs to be relevant to their life." Chen points to the stagnant US comic book industry as an example of irrelevance. "I don't want to see video games become like American superhero comics," he admits. "American comics live and die based on a very niche audience. In Japan, comics are a national art form."
—Sid Shuman, Gamepro, May 2009
The blue-green algae blooms can occur in both freshwater and saltwater environments, but are most commonly found in stagnant bodies of water enriched by runoff, Paerl said. Public health officials in the southeastern United States are beginning to monitor water supplies for some of the toxins.
—Bridget M. Kuehn, Journal of the American Medical Association, 25 May 2005
Andrew Delbanco, The New York Review of Books, 14 May 2009
"For adults, entertainment needs to be relevant to their life." Chen points to the stagnant US comic book industry as an example of irrelevance. "I don't want to see video games become like American superhero comics," he admits. "American comics live and die based on a very niche audience. In Japan, comics are a national art form."
—Sid Shuman, Gamepro, May 2009
The blue-green algae blooms can occur in both freshwater and saltwater environments, but are most commonly found in stagnant bodies of water enriched by runoff, Paerl said. Public health officials in the southeastern United States are beginning to monitor water supplies for some of the toxins.
—Bridget M. Kuehn, Journal of the American Medical Association, 25 May 2005
Recent Examples on the Web
Unlike stagnant fossil-fuel heating techniques, heat pumps are a technology that’s evolving, getting more and more efficient at extracting heat from outdoor air and moving it inside.
—Matt Simon, WIRED, 29 Mar. 2024
Furthermore, most specialties experienced stagnant pay across years, while only a few specialties saw cost-of-living and inflation adjustments to their wages.
—Sai Balasubramanian, M.d., J.d., Forbes, 28 Mar. 2024
Orlando’s offense looked stagnant, with too many isolations and midrange jumpers.
—Danny Emerman, The Mercury News, 27 Mar. 2024
Teachers are quitting in droves over stagnant salaries and burnout.
—Emma Burleigh, Fortune, 27 Mar. 2024
Washington, which grew education funding at a higher rate than California and ranked fifth nationally in per-student revenue growth, was largely stagnant on the NAEP from 2003 to 2019.
—Christian Barnard, Orange County Register, 29 Feb. 2024
Organic buildup was inside of an ice chute, and there were utensils in stagnant water, the report said.
—Jacqueline Pinedo, Sacramento Bee, 22 Mar. 2024
Stoney’s record mostly shines outside of the Wave’s two semifinals losses that owed in large part to stagnant offense.
—Tom Krasovic, San Diego Union-Tribune, 14 Mar. 2024
There are fears that an AMOC shutdown would mean oxygen-rich surface waters would no longer mix with deeper waters, leading to a stagnant ocean largely devoid of life.
—Laura Paddison, CNN, 12 Mar. 2024
Matt Simon, WIRED, 29 Mar. 2024
Furthermore, most specialties experienced stagnant pay across years, while only a few specialties saw cost-of-living and inflation adjustments to their wages.
—Sai Balasubramanian, M.d., J.d., Forbes, 28 Mar. 2024
Orlando’s offense looked stagnant, with too many isolations and midrange jumpers.
—Danny Emerman, The Mercury News, 27 Mar. 2024
Teachers are quitting in droves over stagnant salaries and burnout.
—Emma Burleigh, Fortune, 27 Mar. 2024
Washington, which grew education funding at a higher rate than California and ranked fifth nationally in per-student revenue growth, was largely stagnant on the NAEP from 2003 to 2019.
—Christian Barnard, Orange County Register, 29 Feb. 2024
Organic buildup was inside of an ice chute, and there were utensils in stagnant water, the report said.
—Jacqueline Pinedo, Sacramento Bee, 22 Mar. 2024
Stoney’s record mostly shines outside of the Wave’s two semifinals losses that owed in large part to stagnant offense.
—Tom Krasovic, San Diego Union-Tribune, 14 Mar. 2024
There are fears that an AMOC shutdown would mean oxygen-rich surface waters would no longer mix with deeper waters, leading to a stagnant ocean largely devoid of life.
—Laura Paddison, CNN, 12 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'stagnant.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near stagnant
Cite this Entry
“Stagnant.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stagnant. Accessed 16 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
stagnant
adjective
stag·nant
ˈstag-nənt
1
: not flowing in a current or stream : motionless
2
: not active or brisk
stagnant business
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