sloth

American  

[slawth, slohth] / slɔθ, sloʊθ /

noun

1. habitual disinclination to exertion; laziness; indolence.

   Indifference, negligence, and sloth have no place in the classroom.

   Synonyms:

   idleness

2. any of several slow-moving, arboreal, tropical American edentates of the family Bradypodidae, having a long, coarse, grayish-brown coat often of a greenish cast caused by algae, and long, hooklike claws used in gripping tree branches while hanging or moving along in a habitual upside-down position.

3. a pack or group of bears.

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sloth British  

/ sləʊθ /

noun

1. any of several shaggy-coated arboreal edentate mammals of the family Bradypodidae, esp Bradypus tridactylus ( three-toed sloth or ai ) or Choloepus didactylus ( two-toed sloth or unau ), of Central and South America. They are slow-moving, hanging upside down by their long arms and feeding on vegetation

2. reluctance to work or exert oneself

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Etymology

Origin of sloth

First recorded in 1125–75; Middle English slowth; replacing Old English slǣwth, derivative of slǣw, variant of slāw “slow”; slow, -th ¹

Example Sentences

The criminal justice system is compromised by corruption and sloth.

From Salon

Mr Tardy captured a brown‑throated three‑toed sloth clinging to a barbed wire post after crossing a road.

From BBC

They say giant sloths walking the land were an easy target for the first human hunters.

From BBC

Their blood temperature fluctuates with the ambient temperature, a rare trait among mammals that they share with the sloth.

From Salon

A sloth has had pioneering dental surgery to cure toothache.

From BBC