Synonyms of idle

idle 1 of 2

adjective

ˈī-dᵊl 

1

as in dormant

not being in a state of use, activity, or employment

the car was idle for two weeks while they went on vacation

the company's competitors have not been idle in developing rival products

Synonyms & Similar Words

• dormant
• off
• vacant
• unused
• inactive
• dead
• inert
• inoperative
• fallow
• latent
• at rest
• out of commission
• free
• on the shelf
• useless
• unoccupied
• asleep
• suspended
• interrupted
• quiescent
• slow
• unusable
• arrested
• lifeless
• comatose
• sleepy
• moribund
• unworkable
• abeyant
• inoperable
• dull

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• active
• operating
• busy
• on
• working
• functioning
• operative
• employed
• operational
• alive
• living
• going
• functional
• running
• workable
• industrious
• operable
• practical
• vigorous
• useful
• energetic
• feasible
• assiduous
• viable
• usable
• sedulous

2

as in lazy

not easily aroused to action or work

an idle employee who always seems to be either on break or at lunch

Synonyms & Similar Words

• lazy
• sleepy
• indolent
• shiftless
• slothful
• dull
• quiescent
• listless
• sluggish
• inert
• lethargic
• drowsy
• torpid
• languorous
• apathetic
• supine
• lazyish

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• industrious
• active
• zealous
• ambitious
• diligent
• enterprising
• dynamic
• spirited
• lively
• vigorous
• brisk
• energetic
• exuberant
• bouncing
• animated
• sprightly
• vivacious
• perky
• jaunty
• frisky
• pert
• snappy
• springy
• peppy
• jazzy
• zippy

idle

2 of 2

verb

as in to lazy

to spend time doing nothing

she likes to idle during the summer and recharge herself for the fall semester

we idled away the evening relaxing around the campfire

Synonyms & Similar Words

• lazy
• bum
• lounge
• rest
• chill
• laze
• dawdle
• play
• kill time
• relax
• veg out
• stroll
• goof (off)
• hack (around)
• loll
• kick back
• hang (around or out)
• drone
• dillydally
• poke
• loaf
• hang about
• muck
• linger
• footle
• twiddle one's thumbs
• loiter
• dally
• mess
• kick around
• trifle
• hibernate
• fool
• lag
• doze
• piddle
• monkey
• estivate
• fiddle (around)
• putter (around)
• amble
• potter (around)
• saunter
• tarry
• truant
• mosey
• malinger
• swan
• goldbrick
• furlough

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• slave
• work
• labor
• toil
• plow
• plug
• grind
• hustle
• sweat
• plod
• buckle (down)
• apply
• drudge
• grub
• peg
• hump
• moil
• exert
• travail
• put out

Synonym Chooser

How is the word idle different from other adjectives like it?

Some common synonyms of idle are inactive, inert, passive, and supine. While all these words mean "not engaged in work or activity," idle applies to persons that are not busy or occupied or to their powers or their implements.

workers were idle in the fields

When is inactive a more appropriate choice than idle?

The meanings of inactive and idle largely overlap; however, inactive applies to anyone or anything not in action or in operation or at work.

on inactive status as an astronaut

inactive accounts

When could inert be used to replace idle?

The words inert and idle are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, inert as applied to things implies powerlessness to move or to affect other things; as applied to persons it suggests an inherent or habitual indisposition to activity.

inert ingredients in drugs

an inert citizenry

When can passive be used instead of idle?

The words passive and idle can be used in similar contexts, but passive implies immobility or lack of normally expected response to an external force or influence and often suggests deliberate submissiveness or self-control.

passive resistance

When might supine be a better fit than idle?

While in some cases nearly identical to idle, supine applies only to persons and commonly implies abjectness or indolence.

a supine willingness to play the fool

How is the word idle different from other adjectives like it?

Some common synonyms of idle are inactive, inert, passive, and supine. While all these words mean "not engaged in work or activity," idle applies to persons that are not busy or occupied or to their powers or their implements.

workers were idle in the fields

When is inactive a more appropriate choice than idle?

The meanings of inactive and idle largely overlap; however, inactive applies to anyone or anything not in action or in operation or at work.

on inactive status as an astronaut

inactive accounts

When could inert be used to replace idle?

The words inert and idle are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, inert as applied to things implies powerlessness to move or to affect other things; as applied to persons it suggests an inherent or habitual indisposition to activity.

inert ingredients in drugs

an inert citizenry

When can passive be used instead of idle?

The words passive and idle can be used in similar contexts, but passive implies immobility or lack of normally expected response to an external force or influence and often suggests deliberate submissiveness or self-control.

passive resistance

When might supine be a better fit than idle?

While in some cases nearly identical to idle, supine applies only to persons and commonly implies abjectness or indolence.

a supine willingness to play the fool

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of idle

Adjective

Flying into Singapore over the weekend gave me a front row seat to the literal sea of cargo ships sitting idle in the Port of Singapore. —Leonie Kidd, CNBC, 20 Apr. 2026

Nonetheless, the question of how to make the 25th Amendment meaningful is no longer idle or theoretical. —Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 17 Apr. 2026

Verb

Days passed and bombs kept falling, while oil tankers idled on either side of the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran had effectively closed in retaliation for the war launched by Israel and the United States. —Ishaan Tharoor, New Yorker, 8 Apr. 2026

Many wells remain the responsibility of active oil and gas field operators and are subject to idle well management plans, bonding requirements and escalating plugging obligations under recent legislation. —Tim Rathmann, San Diego Union-Tribune, 8 Apr. 2026