loiter
Americanverb (used without object)
-
to linger aimlessly or as if aimless in or about a place.
to loiter around the bus terminal.
- Synonyms:
- loaf
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to move in a slow, idle manner, making purposeless stops in the course of a trip, journey, errand, etc..
to loiter on the way to work.
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to waste time or dawdle over work.
He loiters over his homework until one in the morning.
verb (used with object)
verb
Synonym Usage
Loiter, dally, dawdle, idle imply moving or acting slowly, stopping for unimportant reasons, and in general wasting time. To loiter is to linger aimlessly: to loiter outside a building. To dally is to loiter indecisively or to delay as if free from care or responsibility: to dally on the way home. To dawdle is to saunter, stopping often, and taking a great deal of time, or to fritter away time working in a halfhearted way: to dawdle over a task. To idle is to move slowly and aimlessly, or to spend a great deal of time doing nothing: to idle away the hours.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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loitersimple
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loiterssimple
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have loiteredperfect
-
has loiteredperfect
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am loiteringprogressive
-
are loiteringprogressive
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is loiteringprogressive
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have been loiteringperfect progressive
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has been loiteringperfect progressive
Past
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loiteredsimple
-
had loiteredperfect
-
was loiteringprogressive
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were loiteringprogressive
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had been loiteringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of loiter
First recorded before 1300–50; Middle English loteren, loytren, perhaps from Middle Dutch loteren “to stagger, totter”; compare Dutch leuteren “to dawdle”
Explanation
To loiter is to hang around a place with no real purpose, usually somewhere where you are not welcome — like under the “No Loitering” sign at a convenience store. If you’re a dawdler, or a loafer, then you are probably inclined to loiter from time to time. The verb loiter is similar to “hang out,” but it has a more negative connotation and is sometimes associated with acting illegally. You might hang out at your friend’s house watching movies, but you would loiter by the vending machine at school when you are supposed be in class.
Vocabulary lists containing loiter
Fever 1793
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Ghost
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"The Odyssey" by Homer, Books 19–24
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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.
According to Sameera Khan, the co-author of 'Why Loiter?
From BBC • Jan. 13, 2017
Neha of Why Loiter is getting married next year and says her partner fully supports her activities.
From BBC • Dec. 4, 2016
Activists are also pushing back with popular campaigns like Why Loiter, which urges women to wander without any apparent purpose and reclaim public spaces that are mostly inhabited by men.
From Washington Post • Oct. 21, 2015
In the years since, members Earl Sweatshirt, Jasper Dolphin and Taco Bennett have been among those to star in comedy sketch series Loiter Squad, alongside Tyler.
From The Guardian • May 28, 2015
Accordingly Tom Frisk and Bob Loiter were summoned, when the President asked them upon their honor if they knew the top to have been Riot's.
From Young Folks Treasury, Volume 3 (of 12) Classic Tales and Old-Fashioned Stories by Mabie, Hamilton Wright
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
