layabout

American

[ley-uh-bout] / ˈleɪ əˌbaʊt /

noun

Chiefly British.

a lazy or idle person; loafer.

layabout British

/ ˈleɪəˌbaʊt /

noun

a lazy person; loafer

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

verb

old-fashioned (preposition, usually intr or reflexive) to hit out with violent and repeated blows in all directions

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of layabout

1930–35; noun use of verb phrase lay about, nonstandard variant of lie about

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

At the center of this story is a gainfully employed layabout, an unnamed, possibly mythical “friend of a friend.”

From Salon • Jan. 14, 2026

Katie sees Rachel as little more than a useless layabout waiting to claim the apartment, even though Rachel had been the live-in caregiver before things turned.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 6, 2024

“And the same guy played Sonic in both shows,” Scott Pilgrim, the doofy 23-year-old layabout of “Scott Pilgrim Takes Off,” shares, unprompted, to his love interest, Ramona Flowers.

From New York Times • Nov. 19, 2023

My sister and her layabout sons are facing eviction.

From Slate • Aug. 17, 2020

The supervisor is sitting extremely comfortably with his legs crossed and his arm hanging over the backrest here like some layabout.

From The Trial by Wyllie, David

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023