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Definitions

idle

[ahyd-l] / ˈaɪd l /
ADJECTIVE
worthless, ineffective
Synonyms
STRONGEST
empty unproductive useless
STRONG
hollow rambling
WEAK
abortive bootless frivolous fruitless futile groundless insignificant irrelevant not serious nugatory of no avail otiose pointless superficial trivial unavailing unhelpful unnecessary unsuccessful vain
Antonyms
WEAK
active ambitious busy diligent effective employed hustling important productive used working worthwhile

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.

Some regularly put their cars in sport mode, which in some models disables the engine from shutting off when the car is idle.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 3, 2026

Uploads and downloads were fast and didn’t idle.

From Salon • Mar. 27, 2026

With each essay, I peel off the layer of idle ease that is the A.I. generation and see what remains: only hints of a life, of a story, of a human.

From Slate • Mar. 20, 2026

It said Facebook can "choose to be idle and keep feeding users fast-food, but that only works for so long".

From BBC • Mar. 16, 2026

Her cousin wasn’t exactly idle, but she was never given the really difficult tasks.

From "A Girl Named Disaster" by Nancy Farmer

From Roget's 21st Century Thesaurus, Third Edition Copyright © 2013 by the Philip Lief Group.