couch potato

noun

plural couch potatoes
: a lazy and inactive person
especially : one who spends a great deal of time watching television

Examples of couch potato in a Sentence

a couch potato who refused to budge no matter what needed to be done
Recent Examples on the Web After all, there is a reason why people uninterested in physical activity are often dubbed couch potatoes. Melanie Radzicki McManus, CNN, 3 Sep. 2024 Some people in the audience are weekend warriors, others are couch potatoes, and others are hardened survivalists. Frederick Dreier, Outside Online, 30 Aug. 2024 The casual observer and couch potato don’t need to know a thing about obscure scoring systems or the career results of athletes who have spent the past three years largely anonymous. Candace Buckner, Washington Post, 30 June 2024 Postell Pringle as Big Charles exemplifies the couch potato sports fan, standing up for all the big ensemble scenes. Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 14 Mar. 2024 See all Example Sentences for couch potato 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'couch potato.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1976, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of couch potato was in 1976

Dictionary Entries Near couch potato

Cite this Entry

“Couch potato.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/couch%20potato. Accessed 31 Oct. 2024.

Kids Definition

couch potato

noun
: someone who spends a lot of time sitting and watching television

More from Merriam-Webster on couch potato

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!