lag

¹ American  

[lag] / læg /

verb (used without object)

lagged, lagging

1. to fail to maintain a desired pace or to keep up; fall or stay behind.

   After five minutes of hard running, some of them began to lag.

   Synonyms:

   linger, loiter

   Antonyms:

   hasten

2. to move or develop slowly, as toward a goal or objective, or in relation to an associated factor (often followed bybehind ).

   to lag behind in production.

3. to delay or fail in reaching full development.

   The factory lags regularly in making its quota.

4. to hang back; linger; delay.

   The old friends lagged because they wanted to talk some more.

5. to decrease, wane, or flag gradually, as in intensity.

   Interest lagged as the meeting went on.

6. (in video games) to experience a delay between player input or game signals and the in-game manifestation of that action, often due to high network latency.

   I’m lagging so hard that enemies are killing me before I can even attack them.

7. Marbles. to throw one's shooting marble toward a line lag line on the ground in order to decide on the order of play.

8. Billiards, Pool. string.

---

verb (used with object)

lagged, lagging

1. to fail to keep up with.

   The industry still lags the national economy.

2. Obsolete. to cause to lag.

noun

1. a lagging or falling behind; retardation.

   Synonyms:

   slowdown

2. a person who lags behind, is the last to arrive, etc.

3. an interval or lapse of time.

   There was a developmental lag in the diffusion of ideas.

4. Digital Technology.

   1. Also called display lag. the delay between a signal input and its display on a screen, as a high-definition television screen or LCD, due to latency in digital data conversion.

   2. Also called input lag. (in video games) a display lag between player input or game signals and the in-game manifestation of that action, due to differences in display refresh rate or controller input.

      To make a competitive speed run, your best display option for minimal lag is still a CRT.

   3. Also called network lag. (in video games) such a display lag due to high network latency.

      If you have an old computer or slow connection, lag makes multiplayer gameplay difficult.

5. Mechanics. the amount of retardation of some motion.

6. Electricity. the retardation of one alternating quantity, as current, with respect to another related alternating quantity, as voltage, often expressed in degrees.

7. Marbles, Billiards, Pool. the act of lagging.

lag ² American  

[lag] / læg /

verb (used with object)

lagged, lagging

1. to send to penal servitude; imprison

---

noun

1. a convict or ex-convict.

2. a period or term of penal servitude; prison sentence.

lag ³ American  

[lag] / læg /

noun

1. one of the staves or strips that form the periphery of a wooden drum, the casing of a steam cylinder, or the like.

2. Masonry. a crosspiece between ribs in a centering.

---

verb (used with object)

lagged, lagging

1. to line or cover (an excavation) with lagging.

2. to cover with insulation, as a steam boiler, to prevent radiation of heat.

lag ¹ British  

/ læɡ /

verb

1. (often foll by behind) to hang (back) or fall (behind) in movement, progress, development, etc

2. to fall away in strength or intensity

3. to determine an order of play in certain games, as by rolling marbles towards a line or, in billiards, hitting cue balls up the table against the top cushion in an attempt to bring them back close to the headrail

---

noun

1. the act or state of slowing down or falling behind

2. the interval of time between two events, esp between an action and its effect

3. an act of lagging in a game, such as billiards

lag ² British  

/ læɡ /

noun

1. a convict or ex-convict (esp in the phrase old lag )

2. a term of imprisonment

---

verb

1. (tr) to arrest or put in prison

lag ³ British  

/ læɡ /

verb

1. (tr) to cover (a pipe, cylinder, etc) with lagging to prevent loss of heat

---

noun

1. the insulating casing of a steam cylinder, boiler, etc; lagging

2. a stave or lath

Etymology

Origin of lag¹

First recorded in 1500–50; origin uncertain, probably from Scandinavian: compare Middle Danish lakke, Norwegian lagga “to go slowly”

Origin of lag²

First recorded in 1565–75; origin uncertain

Origin of lag³

First recorded in 1655–60; from Scandinavian; compare Old Norse lǫgg “rim of a barrel,” Swedish lagg “stave”

---

Explanation

When you can't keep up with your fellow marathon runners, you can say that you lag behind them. The word lag describes a kind of slowness or delay. As a noun, it means a slowing: "The coach was disappointed by the lag in her swimmers' best times that day." When you lag behind someone, you fall back or don't measure up. A student who struggles with math, for example, might say that his grades lag behind his best friend's. In the 1550s, lag meant "last person."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

lag lagged lagging

It is unclear yet from official data, which have a lag, how investors outside France have behaved during the recent volatility.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 22, 2026

Because crops take months to reach harvest, and growing seasons differ by region and by crop, El Niño’s supply impact typically occurs with a lag of about 16 months, according to Ibrahim.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 21, 2026

On the surface, this suggests that the technology stocks that have helped lead the S&P 500 higher may lag the broader market in the weeks ahead.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 18, 2026

Emily St. John Mandel touched down in Los Angeles just hours before she arrived at Botanica in Silver Lake, shirt crisp, eyes bright, not a hint of jet lag in sight.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 12, 2026

Then he caught up with the group, determined not to lag behind, not to complain, not to be any trouble to anyone.

From "A Long Walk to Water" by Linda Sue Park

We know that because of the very high percentage — over 90% — of mutual funds that have lagged the S&P 500 for cumulative performance over the past 20 years.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 9, 2026

"Before the ube craze, it was a niche market," he said, adding it had lagged behind high-value crops like bananas, mangoes and coffee.

From Barron's ● Oct. 6, 2026

I hasten to add that it is not necessarily a criticism of these ETFs that they have lagged the broad market.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 2, 2026

Union members have said they are frustrated with compensation that has lagged behind other area employers and poor work-life balance.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2026

I lagged behind and stood in the doorway.

From "Dead End in Norvelt" by Jack Gantos

In a debate earlier this week, Bass highlighted her accomplishments in paving the way for new affordable housing, while Raman asserted that housing production is still lagging and Bass isn’t doing enough.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2026

He promised to replace Rikers with smaller facilities, but their construction is lagging behind schedule.

From Barron's ● Oct. 12, 2026

If AI made it easier to pick market-beating stocks, we therefore should have seen a much lower percentage this year of mutual funds lagging the market.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 9, 2026

Meanwhile, the crisis has been aggravated by lagging salaries.

From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026

A gray salt spittle lagging and curling in the rock pool.

From "The Road" by Cormac McCarthy

Random Word

Spin the wheel and learn a new word!

---

Related Words

• decrease
• diminish
• fail
• fall off
• falter
• slacken
• slow
• trail
• wane

---