Dictionary.com
definitions

lazy

[ley-zee]
See more synonyms for lazy on Thesaurus.com
adjective, la·zi·er, la·zi·est.
  1. averse or disinclined to work, activity, or exertion; indolent.
  2. causing idleness or indolence: a hot, lazy afternoon.
  3. slow-moving; sluggish: a lazy stream.
  4. (of a livestock brand) placed on its side instead of upright.
verb (used without object), la·zied, la·zy·ing.
  1. to laze.

Origin of lazy

1540–50; compare Low German lasich languid, idle
Related formsla·zi·ly, adverbla·zi·ness, nounla·zy·ish, adjective

Synonyms for lazy

See more synonyms for on Thesaurus.com
1. slothful. See idle. 3. inert, inactive, torpid.

Antonyms for lazy

1. industrious. 3. quick.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for lazy

tired, sleepy, weary, lackadaisical, passive, careless, apathetic, inattentive, indifferent, dull, lethargic, comatose, dilatory, drowsy, idle, indolent, inert, laggard, languid, lifeless

Examples from the Web for lazy

Contemporary Examples of lazy

Historical Examples of lazy

  • The industrious and thrifty would be at the mercy of the lazy and wicked.

  • The faintest whiff of stephanotis came to her on the lazy summer air.

    Thoroughbreds

    W. A. Fraser

  • There was no sparkle of any kind on the lazy stream of his life.

    The Secret Agent

    Joseph Conrad

  • If you weren't too lazy to give orders, Pete, you'd have cold beer for a day like this.

    Good Indian

    B. M. Bower

  • I guess she thinks we're a lazy bunch, all right, when the old man's gone.

    Good Indian

    B. M. Bower

British Dictionary definitions for lazy

lazy

adjective lazier or laziest
  1. not inclined to work or exertion
  2. conducive to or causing indolence
  3. moving in a languid or sluggish mannera lazy river
  4. (of a brand letter or mark on livestock) shown as lying on its side
Derived Formslazily, adverblaziness, noun

Word Origin for lazy

C16: origin uncertain
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
Word Origin and History for lazy
adj.

1540s, laysy, of unknown origin. Replaced native slack, slothful, and idle as the main word expressing the notion of "averse to work." In 19c. thought to be from lay (v.) as tipsy from tip. Skeat is responsible for the prevailing modern view that it probably comes from Low German, cf. Middle Low German laisch "weak, feeble, tired," modern Low German läösig, early modern Dutch leuzig, all of which may go back to the PIE root *(s)leg- "slack." According to Weekley, the -z- sound disqualifies a connection with French lassé "tired" or German lassig "lazy, weary, tired." A supposed dialectal meaning "naught, bad," if it is the original sense, may tie the word to Old Norse lasenn "dilapidated," lasmøyrr "decrepit, fragile," root of Icelandic las-furða "ailing," las-leiki "ailment." Lazy Susan is from 1917.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper