INACTIVITY Synonyms: 50 Similar and Opposite Words

inactivity

noun

Definition of inactivity

as in inertia

lack of action or activity the inactivity outside the school led me to think that it must have been vacation week

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in neglect

lack of use after weeks of inactivity, the car wouldn't start

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of inactivity But the court, citing inactivity in the case, has filed a motion to dismiss. — David Lyons, Sun Sentinel, 14 Nov. 2026 After a long period of inactivity post-Kendrick beef, Drake dropped a metric ton of music this year. — Hattie Lindert, Pitchfork, 13 Nov. 2026 The company is reemerging after a period of inactivity brought on by box office disappointments and mounting financial pressure. — Matt Grobar, Deadline, 10 Nov. 2026 After a period of inactivity that included elbow surgery, Álvarez’s greatest enemy is time. — Eduard Cauich, Los Angeles Times, 30 Oct. 2026 Clots can also be caused by inactivity, such as sitting on a long flight or being immobile after surgery. — Jen Christensen, CNN Money, 20 Oct. 2026 An injury can damage a vein, while prolonged inactivity slows blood flow. — Angela Haupt, Time, 16 Oct. 2026 The default settings include a full power-off after an hour of inactivity, rather than entering sleep mode. — Will Greenwald, PC Magazine, 16 Oct. 2026 For example, Hilton points expire after 24 consecutive months of inactivity. — Jason Stauffer, CNBC, 1 Oct. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for inactivity

Noun

On one level, these results might seem like a recipe for legislative inertia and policy stagnation.

— the Monitor's Editorial Board, Christian Science Monitor, 9 Nov. 2026
Max Murray, of North Liberty, staffed the station to help participants learn about inertia and motion.

— Doug Ross, Chicago Tribune, 1 Nov. 2026

Definition of inertia

Noun

All of those children were known to the Department of Children and Families and had referrals for abuse or neglect.

— Kaitlin McCallum, Hartford Courant, 2 Nov. 2026
The building already has materials, dimensions, defects, histories, neighbors, owners, previous uses, and established patterns of maintenance or neglect.

— Julian Rose, Artforum, 1 Nov. 2026

Definition of neglect

Noun

Exasperated and furious over their inaction, Heumann and a group of disability activists staged a sit-in at the San Francisco Health, Education and Welfare federal building on Apr 5, 1977.

— Barry Levitt, Time, 6 Nov. 2026
The landscape prior to the New Deal was one of government inaction.

— Business Columnist, Los Angeles Times, 5 Nov. 2026

Definition of inaction

Noun

Built into a natural ravine, the stadium’s site was used for ancient Greek athletic contests and later Roman spectacles before falling into centuries of disuse.

— ABC News, ABC News, 16 Aug. 2026
So long as effective communication persists, the reflex to mourn the disuse of a language can be motivated only by something else—nostalgia or, perhaps, the loss of a group’s ability to easily demarcate itself.

— The New Yorker, New Yorker, 10 Aug. 2026

Definition of disuse

Noun

Meanwhile, in England and the United States and across continental Europe, statutes that punished idleness sharpened into vagrancy laws that gave police discretionary power to identify when a form of nonaction constituted criminal disorder.

— Sophie Landres, Artforum, 1 Oct. 2026
This isn't due to idleness, but often because workers finish tasks early, sometimes hours before the workday ends, especially with AI boosting efficiency.

— Barnaby Lashbrooke, Forbes.com, 21 Aug. 2026

Definition of idleness

Noun

Stewart gave the character so much humanity, life, and fear, the terror of a life wasted in pursuit of wealth to the abandonment of all else.

— Sean Woods, Rolling Stone, 30 Oct. 2026
If one relative always made Christmas dinner, this year’s gathering may shift to a potluck, a smaller meal or a new host, a change the Hospice Foundation of America describes as a form of compromise rather than abandonment.

— Ashley Lynch, Sacbee.com, 30 Oct. 2026

Definition of abandonment

Browse Nearby Words

inactivities

inactivity

in actuality

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“Inactivity.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/inactivity. Accessed 15 Nov. 2026.

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Synonyms of inactivity

noun

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