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Definitions

lose time

VERB
tarry
Synonyms
STRONG
abide bide dally drag dwell filibuster lag linger lodge loiter pause poke procrastinate remain rest sojourn stall stay stop tail temporize tool trail visit wait
WEAK
drag one's feet get no place fast goof around hang around hold the phone put off stick around stop over take one's time warm a chair
Antonyms
STRONG
advance allow carry out continue depart do forge go go ahead hurry leave move rush
WEAK
carry on complete finish
VERB
waste time
Synonyms
WEAK
burn daylight dally dawdle delay dillydally fiddle about fritter away time goof off kill time linger loiter lollygag pass the time piddle procrastinate shilly-shally take one's own sweet time take one's time tarry while away the time

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.

“I’m just afraid that we will lose time while the new team comes to understand what is happening.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 9, 2026

It’s one of those places where you just lose time.

From Salon • May 23, 2025

For McLaren, there will be questions about strategy, after they pitted Piastri early in the race when he was second behind Verstappen, albeit beginning to lose time.

From BBC • May 18, 2025

“The patchwork of jurisdictions makes it so hard to get started on these investigations. And when you lose time, your chances of solving these cases goes down,” said Assistant Secretary of Interior Bryan Newland.

From Seattle Times • Sep. 20, 2023

When they headed for the bridges they would only lose time if they cut away across country again.

From "Atonement" by Ian McEwan