wasted time

VERB

idle away time

Synonyms

WEAK

burn daylight dally dawdle delay dillydally fiddle about fritter away time goof off kill time linger loiter lollygag lose time 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 Crystal Palace manager. It just makes no sense and it's wasted time for you to ask me any more questions so I don't talk about any other club."

From Barron's • Jan. 6, 2026

“That gave us pretty good confidence that we should just cancel,” he said, “and save her a ton of wasted time and pain.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 15, 2025

After the Supreme Court ruling, Cheyenne Mountain Zoo called NRP's lawsuit "frivolous" and said it had "wasted" time and money on the case.

From BBC • Jan. 22, 2025

They are variously seeking damages for lost money, wasted time, and "stress, aggravation, frustration, loss of trust, loss of serenity, and loss of confidence in product labeling."

From Salon • May 21, 2024

Nothing was considered more of a sin in our house than wasted time and motions.

From "Cheaper by the Dozen" by Frank B. Gilbreth Jr. and Ernestine Gilbreth Carey