lazy 1 of 2

adjective

ˈlā-zē How to pronounce lazy (audio)
Definition of lazynext
1
as in idle
not easily aroused to action or work the lazy dog just wanted to lie on the couch all day and sleep

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in careless
failing to give proper care and attention that cookbook author can be lazy about giving cooking times and temperatures

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

lazy

2 of 2

verb

as in to bum
to spend time doing nothing a good afternoon to spend lazying on the back porch

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

How is the word lazy distinct from other similar adjectives?

The words indolent and slothful are common synonyms of lazy. While all three words mean "not easily aroused to activity," lazy suggests a disinclination to work or to take trouble.

take-out foods for lazy cooks

When is it sensible to use indolent instead of lazy?

Although the words indolent and lazy have much in common, indolent suggests a love of ease and a dislike of movement or activity.

the heat made us indolent

When might slothful be a better fit than lazy?

While in some cases nearly identical to lazy, slothful implies a temperamental inability to act promptly or speedily when action or speed is called for.

fired for being slothful about filling orders

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 lazy
Adjective
Imagine a lightweight serum packed with PDRN and hyaluronic acid in spray form, which is perfect for lazy gals like me. — Kara Jillian Brown, InStyle, 26 Aug. 2026 The resort has its own waterpark with a freeform swimming pool, baby pool, two-story slide, and lazy river. — Allison Tibaldi, USA Today, 25 Aug. 2026 The other irony is that many of the characters on these very shows would hate this kind of lazy legacy thinking and would balk at it. — Steven Zeitchik, HollywoodReporter, 23 Aug. 2026 Tellingly, workers most often blame their own productivity performance on the general workplace culture and on managers who measure presence over output, rather than on their own discomfort with appearing lazy. — Barnaby Lashbrooke, Forbes.com, 21 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for lazy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for lazy
  1. idle
  2. careless
  3. bum
  4. sleepy
  5. neglectful
  6. laze
  7. indolent
  8. relax
Adjective
  • There are no staffing meetings, no waiting for someone to become available and no work sitting idle because the right person is on vacation or buried under a backlog of deliverables.
    — Charles Lew, Forbes.com, 1 Sep. 2026
  • This results in more empty containers sitting idle on chassis throughout the ports.
    — Glenn Taylor, Footwear News, 31 Aug. 2026
Definition of idle
Adjective
  • As part of the plea agreement, the prosecution amended the first charge to reckless driving, second offense, and the second charge to a careless driving citation.
    — Emily Shapiro, ABC News, 2 Sep. 2026
  • Steele accepted the reduced charge, along with a separate careless-driving citation, and suspended the athlete’s driver’s license for five years.
    — Madeleine Marr, Miami Herald, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of careless
Verb
  • The joy Lisa has with her RHUGT cast compared with the dread her RHOSLC cast seems to bring her really bums me out — especially because of how much of this trip is championing the sisterhood of Housewives.
    — Tom Smyth, Vulture, 31 Aug. 2026
  • My conversation partner returned, somehow unable to bum even a single cigarette from anyone at this party.
    — Sam Stone, Bon Appetit Magazine, 29 July 2026
Definition of bum
Adjective
  • The kids were tucked in by his side, still sleepy from staying up the night before watching TV.
    — Ruby Cramer, New Yorker, 31 Aug. 2026
  • Bonds are the sleepy corner of the markets, with yields typically moving a few hundredths of a percentage point.
    — Laurent Belsie, Christian Science Monitor, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of sleepy
Adjective
  • Still, Duncan on Friday argued that the move is a mistake that empowers neglectful landlords and fails tenants.
    — Dylan Lysen, Kansas City Star, 14 Aug. 2026
  • Played by Rhea Perlman alongside her real-life husband Danny DeVito, the beauty and bingo-obsessed matriarch was pretty neglectful.
    — Huntley Woods, Entertainment Weekly, 3 Aug. 2026
Definition of neglectful
Verb
  • The colony also has a population of New Zealand fur seals that laze around the rocks frequented by flocks of seabirds.
    — Todd Symons, CNN Money, 22 July 2026
  • The pigs that would soon enough become lunch lazed in the compost-pile mud in front of a five-star-hotel-worthy view of the Cretan Sea.
    — Shannon McMahon, Condé Nast Traveler, 1 July 2026
Definition of laze
Adjective
  • Possibly a deepening and widening of populist politics, as both the far right and the far left win over more of the allegedly indolent youth.
    — Jay Caspian Kang, New Yorker, 25 Aug. 2026
  • Every journey with indolent systemic mastocytosis (ISM) is unique, but my journey with ISM has been especially unique.
    — Shannon Dingey, Health, 1 July 2026
Definition of indolent
Verb
  • Direct flights have resumed between India and China, a few old Silk Road trade routes have opened, and in March India relaxed rules around investment from Beijing.
    — Evelyn Cheng,Priyanka Salve, CNBC, 31 Aug. 2026
  • Fences, hedges, noise machines, and relaxing music can all help.
    — R. Eric Thomas, Chicago Tribune, 29 Aug. 2026
Definition of relax

Browse Nearby Words

lazing
lazy
lazybones
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Cite this Entry

“Lazy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/lazy. Accessed 5 Sep. 2026.

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