loiterer

noun

as in snail
someone who moves slowly or more slowly than others she yelled at the loiterers at the end of the line to hurry up

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

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 loiterer Vandals quickly stripped it bare, from its electrical wiring to its rooftop mechanicals, and loiterers congregating outside its doors and in its parking lot sometimes numbered in the dozens during a difficult post-pandemic downturn for the Midway. — Frederick Melo, Twin Cities, 18 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for loiterer
  1. snail
  2. lingerer
Noun
  • The serum has a lightweight, salmon-pink gel texture that goes on clear, with a slightly slippery consistency that reminds me of snail mucin.
    — Alanna Martine Kilkeary, Glamour, 26 Oct. 2026
  • Holed up in her brutalist home in the Swiss alps with her pet snails, she is approached by a handsome young publisher from New York (Alden Ehrenreich) with the impossible task of convincing her to write another book in her Ripley series.
    — Alex Jhamb Burns, Vogue, 21 Oct. 2026
Definition of snail
Noun
  • The lingerers brought their dirty dishes to the bus tub, wiped their mouths one last time with a napkin, and waved to Cleo, their faces saying, Nice job!
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 18 Sep. 2026
  • Nakamura designs for lingerers.
    — Justin Davidson, Curbed, 1 Apr. 2026
Definition of lingerer

Browse Nearby Words

loitered
loiterer
loiterers
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Loiterer.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/loiterer. Accessed 30 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of reticent

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Pwn, Skibidi, Girlboss and Other Words Added to the 2026 Scrabble Dictionary

The Words of the Week - Oct. 30

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
different halloween monsters in silhouette
A Monstrous Vocab Quiz Words That Go Bump in the Night
See All