- pronunciation:
- aI
d
l
- features:
- Homophone Note
| part of speech: |
adjective |
| inflections: |
idler, idlest |
| definition 1: |
When you are idle, you are not doing anything. When a thing is idle, it is not operating. It is not doing anything.
On Sundays, all the machines at the factory are idle.Jalen's grandmother says she gets bored if she is idle for too long.- antonyms:
- busy, employed, engaged
- similar words:
- vacant
|
| definition 2: |
Sometimes being idle means being lazy.
Sam is a little idle in the summer when there's no school. He would rather sleep all day than go out and play baseball or something.- synonyms:
- lazy
- antonyms:
- active
|
| related words: |
quiet |
|
|
| derivations: |
idly (adv.), idleness (n.) |
The words
idle and
idol (a statue) sound alike but have different meanings.