idle

adjective \ ˈī-dᵊl \

Definition of idle

idler play \ˈīd-lər, ˈī-dᵊl-ər\; idlest play \ˈīd-ləst, ˈī-dᵊl-əst\

1 :lacking worth or basis :vain

idle chatter

idle pleasure

2 :not occupied or employed: such as

a :having no employment :inactive

idle workers

b :not turned to normal or appropriate use

idle farmland

c :not scheduled to compete

the team will be idle tomorrow

3 a :shiftless, lazy

b :having no evident lawful means of support

—

idleness

play \ˈī-dᵊl-nəs\ noun

—

idly

play \ˈīd-lē, ˈī-dᵊl-ē\ adverb

See idle defined for English-language learners

See idle defined for kids

Examples of idle in a Sentence

There has been a lot of idle speculation about what might happen, but no one really knows.
the idle days of summer

Recent Examples of idle from the Web

Why had the Japanese government embarked on a policy to limit rice production, effectively paying some farmers to keep their paddy fields idle?

— tom redmond, Bloomberg.com, "How One Man Revolutionized the Modern Sushi Industry," 30 Aug. 2017
Tight ends have been somewhat idle at Notre Dame since Tyler Eifert tied for the team lead in receptions (50) and receiving yards (685) in 2012, the year the program last played for a national title.

— laken litman, Indianapolis Star, "Notre Dame TE Alize Mack on 2016 suspension: 'You've gotta grow up and be a man'," 30 Aug. 2017
Our nation is rich in idle labor and unproductive capital.

— eric levitz, Daily Intelligencer, "The Trump Economy Is a Gilded Mediocrity," 20 Aug. 2017
In losing their fifth consecutive game, and 17th in 26 games since the all-star break, the Brewers not only fell two games behind idle Chicago but a game behind the surging St. Louis Cardinals, who won their sixth in a row to take over second place.

— tom haudricourt, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Twins 7, Brewers 2: Another dreadful showing allows Minnesota to finish four-game sweep," 10 Aug. 2017
Kentuckiana Air Education recommendations include: Don't idle motor vehicles.

— james bruggers, The Courier-Journal, "Wednesday's air pollution alert extended through Thursday," 19 July 2017
SOUTH ATLANTIC LEAGUE (A) Lakewood (11-13) was idle.

— ed barkowitz, Philly.com, "Minor league report: Dylan Cozens, Scott Kingery help the IronPigs win again," 18 July 2017
Hobby Store Kit Kraft is the ultimate remedy for idle hands, offering a large selection of DIY crafts.

— marielle wakim, Los Angeles Magazine, "Best of LA: 92 of Our Favorite Things to Eat, Do, and Buy Right Now," 14 July 2017
Ross hasn't exactly been idle during his retirement.

— chris kuc, chicagotribune.com, "The latest in David Ross' retirement endeavors: A return to baseball," 9 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'idle.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of idle

Middle English idel, from Old English īdel; akin to Old High German ītal worthless

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: before 12th century

See Words from the same year

idle Synonyms

Synonyms

dead, dormant, fallow, free, inactive, inert, inoperative, latent, off, unused, vacant

Synonym Discussion of idle

vain, nugatory, otiose, idle, empty, hollow mean being without worth or significance. vain implies either absolute or relative absence of value.

- vain promises

nugatory suggests triviality or insignificance.

- a monarch with nugatory powers

otiose suggests that something serves no purpose and is either an encumbrance or a superfluity.

- a film without a single otiose scene

idle suggests being incapable of worthwhile use or effect.

- idle speculations

empty and hollow suggest a deceiving lack of real substance or soundness or genuineness.

- an empty attempt at reconciliation
- a hollow victory

inactive, idle, inert, passive, supine mean not engaged in work or activity. inactive applies to anyone or anything not in action or in operation or at work.

- on inactive status as an astronaut
- inactive accounts

idle applies to persons that are not busy or occupied or to their powers or their implements.

- workers were idle in the fields

inert as applied to things implies powerlessness to move or to affect other things; as applied to persons it suggests an inherent or habitual indisposition to activity.

- inert ingredients in drugs
- an inert citizenry

passive implies immobility or lack of normally expected response to an external force or influence and often suggests deliberate submissiveness or self-control.

- passive resistance

supine applies only to persons and commonly implies abjectness or indolence.

- a supine willingness to play the fool

idle

verb

Definition of idle

idled; idling play \ˈīd-liŋ, ˈī-dᵊl-iŋ\

intransitive verb

1 a :to spend time in idleness

b :to move idly

2 :to run at low power and often disconnected usually so that power is not used for useful work

the engine is idling

transitive verb

1 :to pass in idleness

2 :to make idle

workers idled by a strike

3 :to cause to idle

—

idler

play \ˈīd-lər, ˈī-dᵊl-ər\ noun

See idle defined for English-language learners

Examples of idle in a Sentence

She left the engine idling for a few seconds before she turned it off.
The cars idled in traffic.
A group of boys idled in the doorway.
The factory closed, idling several hundred workers.
Thousands of workers have been idled by the bad economy.
The factory has been idled by the strike.

Recent Examples of idle from the Web

Also, idled onshore production in the Eagle Ford region is expected to be back online within the next few days.

— NOLA.com, "How hard will Harvey hit gas prices and the energy sector?," 29 Aug. 2017
The millions of tons of pollution from idling cars and trucks.

— dan mcswain, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Scandal fells a true hero to commuters," 28 Aug. 2017
This spring, the utility agreed to defer, for a year, most of a $67 million penalty Alcoa was contractually obligated to pay for idling the smelter.

— paul roberts, The Seattle Times, "Wenatchee waits and wonders about aluminum smelter’s future," 26 Aug. 2017
The era of rooftop helicopter travel ended on May 16, 1977, however, when an idling Sikorsky S-61’s landing strut gave way and the aircraft tipped over.

— raymond schillinger, Bloomberg.com, "The Death and Life of Helicopter Commuting," 10 Aug. 2017
By shutting it down for the year, Djokovic has idled his coach and others on his payroll.

— jon wertheim, SI.com, "Mailbag: Will Long Break Help Novak Djokovic Heal, Improve Results?," 2 Aug. 2017
An assembly plant in Oshawa, Ontario, will be idled for two extra weeks to reduce inventories of the Chevrolet Impala large sedan.

— reuters, Fortune, "GM Extends Plant Shutdown to Rein In Chevy Bolt Supply," 17 July 2017
The move takes the union one step closer to a strike that would idle about 430 NPR workers.

— jonathan handel, The Hollywood Reporter, "SAG-AFTRA One Step Closer to Possible NPR Strike," 15 July 2017
Police arrived to find a sedan idling in the store's parking lot and the victim, 31-year-old Brandon A. Smith, sitting in the front passenger seat with a gunshot wound to the neck, McKinnon said.

— jerzy shedlock, Alaska Dispatch News, "Anchorage police seek ‘person of interest’ in June shooting at grocery store," 14 July 2017

First Known Use of idle

1592

idle Synonyms

Synonyms

bum, chill, dally, dawdle, dillydally, drone, footle, goof (off), hack (around), hang (around or out), hang about [British], kick around, kick back, laze, lazy, loaf, loll, lounge, veg out, kill time, twiddle one's thumbs

Related Words

fiddle (around), fool, mess, monkey, muck, piddle, play, potter (around), putter (around), trifle; doze, estivate (also aestivate), hibernate; lag, linger, loiter, poke, relax, rest, tarry; amble, mosey, saunter, stroll, swan; furlough, goldbrick, malinger, truant

Near Antonyms

drudge, grind, grub, hump, hustle, labor, moil, peg, plod, plow, plug, slave, sweat, toil, travail, work; apply, buckle (down); exert, put out

Synonym Discussion of idle

idle, loaf, lounge, loll, laze mean to spend time doing nothing. idle may be used in reference to persons that move lazily or without purpose.

- idled the day away

loaf suggests either resting or wandering about as though there were nothing to do.

- she does her work and then loafs the rest of the day

lounge, though occasionally used as equal to idle or loaf, typically conveys an additional implication of resting or reclining against a support or of physical comfort and ease in relaxation.

- he lounged against the wall

loll also carries an implication of a posture similar to that of lounge, but places greater stress upon an indolent or relaxed attitude.

- lolling on the couch

laze usually implies the relaxation of a busy person enjoying a vacation or moments of leisure.

- lazed about between appointments

IDLE Defined for English Language Learners

idle

adjective

Definition of idle for English Language Learners

: not working, active, or being used
: not having any real purpose or value
: not having much activity

idle

verb

Definition of idle for English Language Learners

of an engine or vehicle : to run without being connected for doing useful work
: to spend time doing nothing or nothing useful
: to cause (someone or something) to stop working : to make (someone or something) idle

IDLE Defined for Kids

idle

adjective \ ˈī-dᵊl \

Definition of idle for Students

idler \ˈīd-lər\; idlest \ˈīd-ləst\

1 :not working or in use

idle workers

idle farmland

2 :lazy 1

3 :not based on anything real or serious

an idle threat

—

idleness

\ˈī-dᵊl-nəs\ noun

—

idly

\ˈīd-lē\ adverb

idle

verb

Definition of idle for Students

idled; idling \ˈīd-liŋ\

1 :to spend time doing nothing

I idled away the afternoon.

2 :to run without being connected for doing useful work

The engine is idling.

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See words that rhyme with idle Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for idle Spanish Central: Translation of idle Nglish: Translation of idle for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of idle for Arabic speakers

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idle

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idler

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idle

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