Synonym Chooser

How is the word slothful distinct from other similar adjectives?

The words indolent and lazy are common synonyms of slothful. While all three words mean "not easily aroused to activity," slothful implies a temperamental inability to act promptly or speedily when action or speed is called for.

fired for being slothful about filling orders

When is indolent a more appropriate choice than slothful?

The synonyms indolent and slothful are sometimes interchangeable, but indolent suggests a love of ease and a dislike of movement or activity.

the heat made us indolent

Where would lazy be a reasonable alternative to slothful?

The meanings of lazy and slothful largely overlap; however, lazy suggests a disinclination to work or to take trouble.

take-out foods for lazy cooks

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 slothful Soviet Russia, too, experienced periodic panics about slothful bureaucrats impeding the dictatorship of the proletariat. Charlie Tyson, The New Yorker, 15 Mar. 2025 At our test track, the buzzy little SUV needed a slothful 9.2 seconds to hit 60 mph. Drew Dorian, Car and Driver, 23 Dec. 2022 Procrastination can be slothful or prudent, a vice or a virtue, depending on your habits and the tasks at hand. Arthur C. Brooks, The Atlantic, 16 Dec. 2021 Selfish, feckless, self-deluded, weak-willed yet childishly willful, manipulative, slothful, and mendacious: How can such a despicable character also be such a likable one? Sigrid Nunez, Harper's Magazine, 28 Sep. 2021 After releasing 12 albums in 13 months, Twin Cities guitarist Cory Wong will end his momentarily slothful ways and drop just his second album this year. Jon Bream, Star Tribune, 11 May 2021 At the same time, others construed even the most slothful forms of idleness as a bold resistance to modernity’s greatest ills. Ingrid Nelson, The Conversation, 19 Mar. 2021 The pilfered offspring return with the raiders to their nests, then hatch and grow up to become live-in slaves, tasked with the feeding and care of their slothful masters and their masters’ brood. Brendan Borrell, Discover Magazine, 10 Apr. 2013
Recent Examples of Synonyms for slothful
Adjective
  • Forest walks, lazy lake days, midday swims, and evening bonfires are a part of your regular day.
    Miles Walls, Better Homes & Gardens, 8 Sep. 2025
  • Camels seem slow, hippos clumsy, phoenixes unstable, lions lazy.
    Francois Botha, Forbes.com, 7 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • By selectively powering down idle components, Arcam claims the overall noise floor is significantly decreased.
    Mark Sparrow, Forbes.com, 3 Sep. 2025
  • The Irish are 0-1 and staring at an idle weekend with plenty to work on after a 27-24 loss in Miami on the Sunday night of Week 1.
    Pete Sampson, New York Times, 2 Sep. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Slothful.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/slothful. Accessed 10 Sep. 2025.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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