Synonyms of hang about

hang about

verb

British

1

as in to veg out

to spend time doing nothing

a tea house near campus where many university students could be seen hanging about

Synonyms & Similar Words

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

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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

2

as in to play

to spend time in aimless activity

we'll be hanging about at the pub if you need us

Synonyms & Similar Words

• play
• goof (around)
• fool around
• fiddle (around)
• putter (around)
• potter (around)
• mess around
• kick around
• monkey (around)
• fribble
• doodle
• trifle
• hang (around or out)
• lounge
• horse around
• idle
• loaf
• clown (around)
• dawdle
• diddle (with)
• loll
• tinker
• dillydally
• dally

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• set (to)
• settle (down)
• buckle (down)
• knuckle down

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of hang about

Turquoise pearl, and azure line the space, and a cylindrical hanging light sculpture made of hundreds of white and gold ceramic fish hangs about the lounge seating area. — Kristin Braswell, Condé Nast Traveler, 7 Jan. 2026

The hot air just hangs about, causing the dish to cook unevenly with some spots nearly raw and others burnt. — New Atlas, 4 Nov. 2025

The student was found hanging about 50 feet up in a tree with the open chute, Metro Nashville Police Department said on X Saturday. — Alexandra Skores, CNN Money, 6 Oct. 2025

Despite Dickens’ canonical reputation, the author of door-stoppers such as Oliver Twist and Nicholas Nickeleby, the stench of the entrepreneurial still hangs about him. — Literary Hub, 21 July 2025