as in listless
lacking bodily energy or motivation
he was spiritless and depressed for weeks after being fired
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Recent Examples of spiritless
The Chiefs turned that spiritless first half into a 28-7 blowout Monday night against the Commanders, opening the second half with touchdown drives of 80, 75 and 94 yards.
—
Kansas City Star, 28 Oct. 2025
From spiritless spirits to refusing to open up a bar tab, members of Generation Z are continuing to challenge alcohol traditions.
—Deirdre Bardolf, FOXNews.com, 6 Sep. 2025
The Senators looked spiritless days ago in their building Saturday night ahead of Game 4.
—Julian McKenzie, New York Times, 30 Apr. 2025
Amid the spiritless spirits and a bevy of alcohol-free wines, ciders, and beers, luxury sparkling teas are comfortably the most exciting emerging trend in the low and no-alcohol sphere.
—Camille Berry, Vogue, 29 Apr. 2025
Dance sections lacked charm; lyric passages were spiritless; the klezmer episodes in the third movement were strictly goyish.
—Alex Ross, The New Yorker, 9 Dec. 2024
Yet the club dropped the contest in spiritless fashion, 6-2.
—Julian McWilliams, BostonGlobe.com, 12 Aug. 2023
Lil Wayne is not tolerating spiritless crowds at his shows.
—Daniela Avila, Peoplemag, 15 May 2023
Kansas City Star, 28 Oct. 2025
From spiritless spirits to refusing to open up a bar tab, members of Generation Z are continuing to challenge alcohol traditions.
—Deirdre Bardolf, FOXNews.com, 6 Sep. 2025
The Senators looked spiritless days ago in their building Saturday night ahead of Game 4.
—Julian McKenzie, New York Times, 30 Apr. 2025
Amid the spiritless spirits and a bevy of alcohol-free wines, ciders, and beers, luxury sparkling teas are comfortably the most exciting emerging trend in the low and no-alcohol sphere.
—Camille Berry, Vogue, 29 Apr. 2025
Dance sections lacked charm; lyric passages were spiritless; the klezmer episodes in the third movement were strictly goyish.
—Alex Ross, The New Yorker, 9 Dec. 2024
Yet the club dropped the contest in spiritless fashion, 6-2.
—Julian McWilliams, BostonGlobe.com, 12 Aug. 2023
Lil Wayne is not tolerating spiritless crowds at his shows.
—Daniela Avila, Peoplemag, 15 May 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for spiritless
Adjective
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Data released earlier this week further confirmed the listless state of the broader labor market.—
Alicia Wallace,
CNN Money,
8 Jan. 2026
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One was a listless, underweight female goat with no appetite.—
Nicole Blanchard,
Idaho Statesman,
23 Dec. 2025
Adjective
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The first turned a fourth-quarter fumble into a 59-yard score when Achane burst through a tired, and seemingly defeated Buffalo defensive front and outsprinted the Bills’ entire secondary to the end zone.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
9 Nov. 2025
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But that feels like a tired, outdated characterisation.—
Oliver Kay,
New York Times,
8 Nov. 2025
Adjective
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There’s a sanguine sweetness to the proceedings, and a lackadaisical approach to dry joke delivery that sort of resembles Wes Anderson’s stop-motion work like The Fantastic Mr. Fox (and to a lesser degree his live-action movies).—
Christopher Cruz,
Rolling Stone,
22 Oct. 2025
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However the United Farmworkers Union has contended that staff shortages and lackadaisical management prevent the state Division of Occupational Safety and Health, better known as Cal/OSHA, from effectively enforcing those rules, leading to workers’ debilitating conditions and even death.—
Dan Walters,
Mercury News,
3 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Two shivering dogs now sat in her backseat, exhausted but safe.—
Ashley Vega,
PEOPLE,
7 Nov. 2025
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Surely that has increasing resonance among the politically exhausted and spiritually disenchanted.—
Abby McCloskey,
Mercury News,
7 Nov. 2025
Adjective
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New orders contracted for a fourth month and export bookings remained weak, based on the ISM data.—
Reade Pickert Bloomberg,
Arkansas Online,
6 Jan. 2026
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Getting too little of either can lead to weak, brittle bones, and too much can also cause problems (like kidney stones or nausea).—
T'Keyah Bazin,
Verywell Health,
6 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Video captured it all, down to the motorist going limp and the vehicle crashing down the street.—
Jakob Rodgers,
Mercury News,
9 Jan. 2026
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DeSantis has offered a few limp rationalizations for his demand, but nothing that would overcome the sheer gall of this re-write of the rules.—
Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board,
The Orlando Sentinel,
8 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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The season-two footage that’s been released teases its languid pace and warm, inviting environments all over again — much of season one was spent tracking Frieren’s slow gait through the natural world — punctuated by moments of magical action.—
Eric Vilas-Boas,
Vulture,
1 Jan. 2026
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Just around the bend was an entire tangle of them—mothers with babies, juveniles mock-charging each other, a languid patriarch on his back.—
Matt Ortile,
Condé Nast Traveler,
18 Dec. 2025
Adjective
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The album took soul and gospel cues from his first record and extended them into languorous jams.—
Nina Corcoran,
Pitchfork,
14 Oct. 2025
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As the days grow shorter and darker, and temperatures drop, there’s nothing quite like knowing there’s a warm, welcoming bed awaiting you at home to usher in a cozy night’s sleep, and long, languorous mornings when time allows.—
Hannah Coates,
Vogue,
2 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Spiritless.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/spiritless. Accessed 12 Jan. 2026.
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