slouch
Americanverb (used without object)
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to sit or stand with an awkward, drooping posture.
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to move or walk with loosely drooping body and careless gait.
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to have a droop or downward bend, as a hat.
verb (used with object)
noun
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a drooping or bending forward of the head and shoulders; an awkward, drooping posture or carriage.
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an awkward, clumsy, or slovenly person.
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a lazy, inept, or inefficient person.
verb
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(intr) to sit or stand with a drooping bearing
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(intr) to walk or move with an awkward slovenly gait
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(tr) to cause (the shoulders) to droop
noun
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a drooping carriage
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informal (usually used in negative constructions) an incompetent or slovenly person
he's no slouch at football
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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slouchsimple
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slouchessimple
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have slouchedperfect
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has slouchedperfect
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am slouchingprogressive
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are slouchingprogressive
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is slouchingprogressive
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have been slouchingperfect progressive
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has been slouchingperfect progressive
Past
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slouchedsimple
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had slouchedperfect
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was slouchingprogressive
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were slouchingprogressive
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had been slouchingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of slouch
First recorded in 1505–15; origin uncertain
Explanation
To slouch is to sit or stand with your shoulders hunched. Most people are more likely to slouch when they're tired or bored. You might tend to slouch in math class but sit up straight and tall when your favorite art teacher invites you to enter a piece in an art show. Your math class posture can itself be described as a slouch as well. Yet another meaning of slouch is a person who's lazy or useless — this is actually the word's original definition, from the 1500's. It's thought to be rooted in the Old Norse word slokr, "lazy fellow."
Vocabulary lists containing slouch
The Lingo of Body Language
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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.
See Examples For:
If students slouch, lean against the walls or look around, they were given a warning, Ben said.
From BBC ● Jun. 30, 2026
Visa’s stock, for its part, has been no slouch, rising 2,244% since the time of its IPO in March 2008, compared with a 473% rise for the S&P 500 over the same time.
From MarketWatch ● May 25, 2026
Even before the new changes, Japan has been no slouch.
From Barron's ● May 3, 2026
If streaming is your top reason for using a VPN, while NordVPN is no slouch on streaming, ExpressVPN will be your best bet.
From Salon ● Mar. 27, 2026
The general and I would say our good-byes and I’d try not to slouch as I walked away.
From "The Kite Runner" by Khaled Hosseini
He slouches casually on the velour sofa between bites of granola and sips of black coffee.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 8, 2025
The five Nrityagram women who perform are certainly no slouches, as the opening number makes clear.
From New York Times ● May 10, 2023
He's the kind of fellow who's convinced he knew what the world needs in the way the rest of the slouches around him never did.
From Salon ● Oct. 20, 2022
Pulled pork from the American South ranges in styles, but usually balances the natural sweetness of the meat, slowly cooked until it slouches into tenderness, with tanginess and spice.
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 9, 2022
Manny slouches down and stares up at the ceiling.
From "Dear Martin" by Nic Stone
His press conferences are almost theatrically placid, Brunson often slouched in a hat and/or hooded sweatshirt and deflecting any effort to valorize his success.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 8, 2026
Unlike me, with my sad little balcony lined with wilted pots of herbs, he had proper outdoor space — and a neighbor whose blackberry bush slouched lazily over the fence, heavy with fruit.
From Salon ● Sep. 27, 2025
He said he found Mr Combs there in a towel, slouched on a chair with a "devilish" look on his face, and a broken vase on the floor.
From BBC ● May 12, 2025
But during other stretches, Trump slouched forward, casting his gaze toward the ceiling, or leaned back in his chair with his arms folded and his eyes closed.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 15, 2024
She staggered and slouched into the dining room, where an enormous breakfast lay on the table.
From "Throne of Glass" by Sarah J. Maas
All of that will ensure there is no slouching during Powell’s final stint as Fed chair—and not for investors, either.
From Barron's ● May 4, 2026
Of course those activities are "a good thing" she says, but they won't make up for sitting all day at work staring at a screen or spending the evening slouching on the couch.
From BBC ● Feb. 1, 2026
Fact: Many people spend hours slouching while staring at a computer or focusing on cellphones that draw the eyes down and curve the neck.
From Science Daily ● Dec. 15, 2025
When Lamb forces himself to come slouching through, whether in a verbal sword dance with Scott Thomas’ Taverner or with a more physical display of spycraft, it isn’t just surprising, it’s inspirational.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 3, 2024
The other man is bigger and maybe taller, but he is slouching, so he looks shorter.
From "Vincent and Theo: The Van Gogh Brothers" by Deborah Heiligman
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.
