as in slug
a lazy person
tried to wake up the sluggards who were still sleeping at that late hour
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in slothful
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of sluggard
Anthony Lane, The New Yorker, 19 July 2019
Clearly, supervision at your job is lax, and your sluggard classmate is taking advantage of that.
—Kwame Anthony Appiah, New York Times, 11 Oct. 2017
Slug was – is – a variant on sluggard, which was actually used as a surname for some time, apparently.
—Ruth Walker, The Christian Science Monitor, 7 Sep. 2017
French workers, whom the British like to dismiss as holiday-hogging sluggards, are more productive than the British.
—The Economist, 31 Aug. 2017
Moneyshow, Forbes, 5 Mar. 2021
Noun
Scar then proceeds to desolate the kingdom, with the help of hyenas, while Simba, in exile, grows up to become a pleasure-hunting, grub-eating sluggard.
—Anthony Lane, The New Yorker, 19 July 2019
Clearly, supervision at your job is lax, and your sluggard classmate is taking advantage of that.
—Kwame Anthony Appiah, New York Times, 11 Oct. 2017
Slug was – is – a variant on sluggard, which was actually used as a surname for some time, apparently.
—Ruth Walker, The Christian Science Monitor, 7 Sep. 2017
French workers, whom the British like to dismiss as holiday-hogging sluggards, are more productive than the British.
—The Economist, 31 Aug. 2017
Adjective
The stock really has not done much of anything in the last five years, the stock following a similar sluggard pattern of the company’s revenue line.
—Moneyshow, Forbes, 5 Mar. 2021
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sluggard
Noun
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Hubbard squash, dill, and nasturtiums deter squash bugs, borers, and slugs while attracting pollinators.—
Lauren Landers,
Better Homes & Gardens,
14 May 2026
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But Guerrero’s inconsistent slug sparks the same conversation each spring.—
Mitch Bannon,
New York Times,
13 May 2026
Adjective
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That they would be regarded as slothful morons who aren't worth the price of a ticket of admission.—
Jim Cramer,
CNBC,
2 Feb. 2026
-
Soviet Russia, too, experienced periodic panics about slothful bureaucrats impeding the dictatorship of the proletariat.—
Charlie Tyson,
The New Yorker,
15 Mar. 2025
Noun
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About 20 races took place at Folsom City Lions Park, with up to nine snails per heat climbing one-foot poles; Mayor Justin Raithel motivated his snail with lettuce and made the semifinals before finishing fourth.—
Sacbee.com,
Sacbee.com,
11 May 2026
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And cyclists, bus drivers, walkers and the motoring public need to have a head on a swivel paired with the calmness of a snail around such intersections — a lot could be going on.—
Jim Radcliffe,
Oc Register,
8 May 2026
Adjective
-
Make Waves Let your cares float away with lazy beach days, shimmering pools, and the family-favorite Captiva Landing, which takes fun to new heights with five acres of activity.—
South Seas,
Miami Herald,
15 May 2026
-
The water park is open on weekends in May and features exciting water rides, a relaxing lazy river, and wave pool.—
Natassia Paloma,
USA Today,
15 May 2026
Noun
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Iran retaliated by firing missiles and drones at the United Arab Emirates, an ally of the United States and Israel, including at its energy infrastructure.—
Sudarsan Raghavan,
New Yorker,
12 May 2026
-
The advance could help push battery energy density far beyond the limits of current lithium-ion systems used in most commercial drones.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
12 May 2026
Adjective
-
Furthermore, there is a risk of overdiagnosis, where the test detects a slow-growing, indolent cancer that would never have caused harm in a person’s lifetime, leading to unnecessary treatments, side effects and psychological burden.—
Jesse Pines,
Forbes.com,
8 Feb. 2026
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Every 4:3 shot is framed to maximize the social verticality of the club, and every sequence is edited to evoke the indolent energy of a hot car on a hot summer’s day.—
David Ehrlich,
IndieWire,
23 Jan. 2026
Noun
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His discoveries promise to upset the gaming tables of every school of thought that wagers on new and untested art for idlers’ rewards: the love of novelty, the will to make or unmake reputations, the wish to be hip or au courant.—
Mark Greif,
Harper's Magazine,
26 July 2024
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Their name exudes the essence of an idler and slacker, but women’s loafers themselves are quite the opposite.—
Gaby Keiderling,
Harper's BAZAAR,
19 Jan. 2023
Adjective
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Why didn’t Tania just get one of her fellow Council wokesters to hire her shiftless, entitled kin?—
Howie Carr,
Boston Herald,
28 Sep. 2025
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The film, like How to Train Your Dragon, is about a shiftless youngster (Lilo, a Hawaiian girl who has been acting out since the death of her parents) bonding with a fantasy creature (Stitch, a blue alien experiment designed as a weapon of destruction).—
David Sims,
The Atlantic,
13 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Sluggard.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sluggard. Accessed 16 May. 2026.
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