slothful

American  

[slawth-fuhl, slohth-] / ˈslɔθ fəl, ˈsloʊθ- /

adjective

1. sluggardly; indolent; lazy.

   Synonyms:

   slack, torpid, inactive, sluggish

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slothful British  

/ ˈsləʊθfʊl /

adjective

1. indolent

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Synonym Usage

See idle.

Other Word Forms

• slothfully
  adverb
• slothfulness
  noun

Etymology

Origin of slothful

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English; sloth + -ful

Explanation

To be slothful is to be lazy. When you're slothful, you don't want to do any work. You just want to lie around, eat bonbons, and maybe doze off a little. If you've ever seen the sloth — a slow-moving mammal — you won't be surprised that anyone slothful has a bad work ethic. When you're slothful, you don't feel like doing much of anything. Slothful people tend to sleep too much and lie around on the couch. Being slothful at work could get you fired, and slothful students won't do well at school. The furry kind of sloth is slow due to its nature, but a slothful person should get a move on!

Example Sentences

Slothful, wasteful, idiotic – this is how the bureaucracy is often portrayed.

From The Guardian • Sep. 22, 2018

Slothful belongs in the moral realm, denoting a self-indulgent aversion to exertion.

From English Synonyms and Antonyms With Notes on the Correct Use of Prepositions by Fernald, James Champlin

Else better were it in some bower of peace Slothful to swing, contending with the flies.

From Poems — Volume 2 by Meredith, George

Slothful disorder filled his table; And sluttish plenty deck'd her table.

From The Humorous Poetry of the English Language; from Chaucer to Saxe by Parton, James

And, likewise, the Slothful man may change himself into an Active, Energetic individual simply by polarizing along the lines of the desired quality.

From The Kybalion A Study of The Hermetic Philosophy of Ancient Egypt and Greece by Three Initiates