Synonyms of drone

drone 1 of 3

noun (1)

ˈdrōn 

1

as in slug

a lazy person

those drones just lie around while we do all the work

Synonyms & Similar Words

• slug
• snail
• bum
• loafer
• couch potato
• idler
• slouch
• deadbeat
• sluggard
• do-nothing
• layabout
• lotus-eater
• crawler
• lazybones
• slugabed
• creeper
• delayer
• good-for-nothing
• straggler
• lingerer
• laggard
• loiterer
• saunterer
• shirker
• dawdler
• slowpoke
• putterer
• slacker
• goldbrick
• loller
• clock-watcher
• stick-in-the-mud
• dropout
• ne'er-do-well
• lounger
• malingerer
• dallier
• procrastinator
• quitter

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• hummer
• doer
• hustler
• go-ahead
• self-starter
• comer
• powerhouse
• achiever
• live wire
• go-getter
• highflier

2

as in laborer

a person who does very hard or dull work

after lunch my fellow drones and I shuffle back to our cubicles

Synonyms & Similar Words

• laborer
• worker
• slave
• peon
• foot soldier
• grunt
• toiler
• grubber
• plugger
• grub
• drudge
• drudger
• slogger
• dogsbody
• serf
• workhorse

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• shirker
• slug
• idler
• loafer
• slouch
• sluggard
• goldbrick
• lazybones

drone

2 of 3

noun (2)

as in hum

a monotonous sound like that of an insect in motion

heard the drone of an airplane overhead

Synonyms & Similar Words

• hum
• purr
• buzz
• whisper
• rustle
• thrum
• zoom
• whir
• sigh
• chirr
• moan
• whiz
• burr
• churr
• murmur
• babble
• gurgle
• gasp
• hiss
• coo
• susurrus
• susurration
• zip
• suspiration
• zing
• whish

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• roar
• scream
• screech
• shriek
• squall
• yell
• howl
• squeal
• yelp
• bawl

drone

3 of 3

verb

1

as in to hum

to fly, turn, or move rapidly with a fluttering or vibratory sound

the sound of droning bees all around us

Synonyms & Similar Words

• hum
• buzz
• zip
• burr
• whir
• whisper
• zoom
• hiss
• whiz
• bumble
• murmur
• whistle
• sigh
• whish
• thrum
• chirr
• purr
• coo
• churr
• fizz
• wheeze
• rustle
• swish
• whoosh
• curr
• sizzle

2

as in to lazy

to spend time doing nothing

instead of getting a job, he preferred to drone and live off his parents

Synonyms & Similar Words

• lazy
• lounge
• veg out
• chill
• idle
• bum
• rest
• hack (around)
• goof (off)
• kill time
• loaf
• play
• kick back
• stroll
• poke
• relax
• hang about
• dillydally
• hang (around or out)
• muck
• footle
• laze
• dawdle
• loll
• twiddle one's thumbs
• kick around
• mess
• monkey
• estivate
• trifle
• fool
• potter (around)
• fiddle (around)
• swan
• loiter
• hibernate
• linger
• lag
• piddle
• dally
• doze
• putter (around)
• saunter
• amble
• truant
• mosey
• malinger
• furlough
• goldbrick
• tarry

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of drone

Noun

Guard propaganda showing Trump bleeding out from a sniper bullet or dying in a drone attack is commonplace. — Timothy Nerozzi, The Washington Examiner, 8 July 2026

Small commercial and military drones have become increasingly common in recent conflicts, performing reconnaissance, surveillance, and precision attack missions. — Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 8 July 2026

Verb

Instead, there’s a surplus of annoying, droning noise. — Luke Cyphers, Sportico.com, 11 June 2026

There’s no sound more evocative of summer than that of an old-school ice cream maker’s motor droning its monotonous naaaaaaaa with the backbeat of gas station ice and rock salt grinding and shifting against the spinning ice cream cannister. — Josh Miller, Southern Living, 31 May 2026