as in idled
to pretend to be sick or injured in order to avoid doing work
Because of his frequent absences, his boss suspected he was malingering.
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Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for malingered
Verb
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But now, several hundred workers who were out over the water, working to get it up and running, have been idled.—
Brittney Melton,
NPR,
1 Sep. 2025 -
Engines idled as people abandoned their vehicles to take videos.—
Hayleigh Evans,
AZCentral.com,
28 Aug. 2025
Verb
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After driving his team to the 1-yard line, Fields fooled the entire Steelers defense on a fourth down, faking a handoff and then high-stepping into the end zone untouched to take a 32-31 lead.—
Mike DeFabo,
New York Times,
8 Sep. 2025
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And don’t be fooled by their small size — these dishes hold a surprising amount of food.—
Mark Marino,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
8 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The Falcons played their opener two weeks ago and then had a bye.—
Shaun Goodwin,
Idaho Statesman,
9 Sep. 2025
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The team behind the research noted that many of these genes are tied to developmental delay, which may have played a role in the slower pace of postnatal brain growth in humans compared to chimpanzees.—
Lucy Notarantonio,
MSNBC Newsweek,
9 Sep. 2025
Verb
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That alone is enough to extinguish whatever lingered from Tuesday night’s debacle.—
Chandler Rome,
New York Times,
4 Sep. 2025
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That heavy drinking in the early days of the breakup is briefly discussed but not lingered upon.—
Caleb Hammond,
IndieWire,
4 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Still, the allure of Tesla has always rested in its improbable odds.—
Nick Lichtenberg,
Fortune,
5 Sep. 2025
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Facing a three-run deficit against the Yankees’ rested bullpen, Houston scored six times and struck six hits against four relievers, taking the sort of at-bats that have been missing for so much of their inconsistent second half.—
Chandler Rome,
New York Times,
4 Sep. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Malingered.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/malingered. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.
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