laggard

1 of 2

adjective

lag·​gard ˈla-gərd How to pronounce laggard (audio)
: lagging or tending to lag : slow especially compared to others of the same kind
a laggard pace
… we arrived in Northville, to find … the celebrated ducks playing host to a laggard flock of dark-brown Canada geese.The New Yorker
With sugar prices weak, the stock has been laggard.Richard B. Hoey
laggardly adverb or adjective
laggardness noun

laggard

2 of 2

noun

plural laggards
: someone or something that lags or lingers : someone or something that is slow especially compared to others of the same kind
A few laggards slowed down the pace of the hike.
The company has been accused of being a laggard in adopting new technology.
They [brown bears] usually catch salmon by chasing them through shallow water and pouncing on the laggards.National Wildlife

Examples of laggard in a Sentence

Adjective I hate being stuck behind laggard motorists on the freeway. Noun The company has been a laggard in developing new products. tried to spur on the laggards at the back of the line during the hike
Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
Bush’s father, President George H.W. Bush, came under fire in 1992 for his laggard response to Andrew in Florida, a Category 5 hurricane with winds that reached 165 mph, shortly before his reelection contest against Arkansas Governor Bill Clinton. Julian Zelizer, CNN, 30 Sep. 2022 Its laggard incubation period gives us a full 21 days to intervene between exposure and disease. Abdul El-Sayed, The New Republic, 29 Sep. 2022 These are all new cores from ARM, and the big and little cores are 64-bit only, with only the medium cores able to run any laggard 32-bit applications. Ron Amadeo, Ars Technica, 21 Mar. 2022 However, the American pandemic response has also been faulted for an at times laggard pace at tracking and analyzing the spread of the virus compared to its counterparts abroad. Alexander Tin, CBS News, 14 Mar. 2022 The sector is currently booming, and massive funding announcements are a common occurrence, a testament to the fact that the laggard construction industry has finally woken up to the need to innovate. Angelica Krystle Donati, Forbes, 8 Nov. 2021 Their laggard approach toward data can be attributed to a host of factors. Deepak Mittal, Forbes, 4 Nov. 2021 This is not that surprising, when the great value add that product and process innovation can bring to the enormous and laggard construction sector is considered. Angelica Krystle Donati, Forbes, 26 Oct. 2021 The Kremlin has attributed the mounting contagion and deaths to a laggard vaccination rate. BostonGlobe.com, 13 Oct. 2021
Noun
This is incredible progress at a time when there is no place for laggards in the race to decarbonize. María Mendiluce, Forbes, 29 Feb. 2024 The gap between stock market winners and laggards has widened since 2020, creating a bigger opportunity to beat broad market returns, according to the paper. Silla Brush, Fortune, 27 Feb. 2024 In other words, a manager could fill a portfolio with a bunch of laggards yet still generate a positive overall return, especially in a fast-rising market. The Arizona Republic, 18 Feb. 2024 Long accustomed to being an economic leader, Colorado found itself in the uncomfortable spot of being a laggard last year. Aldo Svaldi, The Denver Post, 16 Feb. 2024 Its industry has been struggling and the stock has been a laggard. John Dorfman, Forbes, 21 Feb. 2024 In interviews, environmental activists working to reduce greenhouse gas emissions say the merger would bring together two steel giants that are laggards on transitioning away from fossil fuels. Jim Tankersley, New York Times, 15 Feb. 2024 Most significantly, the U.S., starting as a laggard in 2020, is the only bloc that is making a run at returning to its pre-pandemic growth trajectory. Philipp Carlsson-Szlezak, Fortune, 12 Feb. 2024 Still, some investors are sticking by the Magnificent Seven laggards. Cnn.com Wire Service, The Mercury News, 8 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'laggard.' 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

Adjective

1702, in the meaning defined above

Noun

1705, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of laggard was in 1702

Dictionary Entries Near laggard

Cite this Entry

“Laggard.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/laggard. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

laggard

adjective
lag·​gard
ˈlag-ərd
: lagging or tending to lag : slow
laggard noun
laggardly adverb or adjective

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