1
as in inertia
an inclination not to do work or engage in activities
the brothers' innate idleness meant that neither did much, either inside or outside their ramshackle cabin
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in inaction
lack of action or activity
a day spent in idleness is nice, but a month of doing nothing is boring!
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in neglect
lack of use
the idleness of the machine was apparent by its thick layer of dust
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of idleness
Spending healthy years in idleness isn’t good for you.
—
Editorial Board, Washington Post, 14 Feb. 2026
DeJean, who recorded the game-changing pick-six in Super Bowl LIX, couldn’t comprehend postseason idleness.
—Brooks Kubena, New York Times, 12 Jan. 2026
This patience is watchfulness, not idleness.
—Francois Botha, Forbes.com, 7 Sep. 2025
All of which could lead to so much work that a man like Wyatt Harper might never have another day of idleness again.
—Literary Hub, 3 Sep. 2025
Editorial Board, Washington Post, 14 Feb. 2026
DeJean, who recorded the game-changing pick-six in Super Bowl LIX, couldn’t comprehend postseason idleness.
—Brooks Kubena, New York Times, 12 Jan. 2026
This patience is watchfulness, not idleness.
—Francois Botha, Forbes.com, 7 Sep. 2025
All of which could lead to so much work that a man like Wyatt Harper might never have another day of idleness again.
—Literary Hub, 3 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for idleness
Noun
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In a field defined by bureaucratic inertia, moving from contract to flight in under a year is nothing short of a developmental miracle.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
13 Mar. 2026
-
The Mini seems to change direction with almost no sense of inertia, biting into corners with terrier-like tenacity.—
Tim Pitt,
Robb Report,
10 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Alhasan said Gulf states must weigh the risks of joining the war against the cost of staying out, warning that inaction could weaken deterrence and make future Iranian attacks more likely.—
Abbas Al Lawati,
CNN Money,
12 Mar. 2026
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This is Shakespeare’s most famous tragedy, a gripping portrait of a young prince caught between action and inaction, grief and rage, truth and deception.—
Cincinnati Enquirer,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
7 Mar. 2026
Noun
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CoreCivic has faced a slew of lawsuits that include accusations of medical neglect and falsifying records to cover up unsafe conditions in its facilities.—
Matthew Kelly,
Kansas City Star,
10 Mar. 2026
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Let’s choose progress over neglect.—
Betty Resch,
Sun Sentinel,
8 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Part of his great accomplishment was to take the European aesthetic of beauty and redefine it for the South, with its heat and its billboards, its indolence and humor and thick nights.—
Hilton Als,
New Yorker,
24 Jan. 2026
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Some part of Baudelaire’s lifelong free-spending and indolence seems to be a direct rebellion against the man, if not outright Freudian jealousy—Charles was an unabashed mama’s boy.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
22 Dec. 2025
Noun
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With Tottenham just one point above safety, their reasons for inactivity in the January window are inadequate.—
Elias Burke,
New York Times,
7 Mar. 2026
-
After weeks of inactivity on the fainting front, Whoopi Goldberg has officially collapsed on The View once again.—
Joey Nolfi,
Entertainment Weekly,
4 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Heart muscles atrophy, or weaken from disuse, in adults who spend prolonged times in the weightlessness of space.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
20 Feb. 2026
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And does a particular level of disuse have to be reached for a word to be dropped into the lexical dustbin?—
Louis Menand,
New Yorker,
22 Dec. 2025
Noun
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Bonner Springs Animal Control announced that an individual was charged with animal abandonment in a Facebook post Wednesday.—
Caroline Zimmerman,
Kansas City Star,
12 Mar. 2026
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The complete abandonment of Americans in the Middle East while other countries are efficiently evacuating theirs raises serious competency concerns about our post-DOGE government.—
Voice of the People,
New York Daily News,
11 Mar. 2026
Noun
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The top reason people resist showing themselves kindness, research has found, is the belief that self-compassion indicates laziness or self-indulgence.—
Nir Eyal,
CNBC,
10 Mar. 2026
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The intentionality of the misinformation—or the absence of information—coupled with the laziness of the execution ties a perfect knot of contempt.—
Jessica Winter,
New Yorker,
27 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Idleness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/idleness. Accessed 15 Mar. 2026.
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