SYNONYMS AND RELATED EXPRESSIONS
indolence
noun
A habitual reluctance to exert effort.
Local English device voice, when available. This is not a recorded dictionary pronunciation.
Avoidance of effort
Closest synonyms
Related words and expressions
These extend or explain the idea and may require a different sentence structure.
Usage distinction
Return to topIndolence attributes inactivity to unwillingness to exert effort; fatigue or illness should not automatically be described this way.
RELATED FORMS, ONE FEATURED ENTRY
The indolent family
indolence is grouped under indolent in the main dictionaries. This form keeps its meaning and previous study record.
indolentadjective
Inclined to avoid work or exertion.
Inclined to avoid work or exertion
Closest synonyms
Related expressions
The indolent apprentice waited for others to finish the task.
The satire's indolent hero spends every afternoon inventing excuses.
CHECK THE MEANING IN CONTEXT
See indolence in use
The fable presents indolence as the reason the orchard is neglected.
In a workshop fable, an apprentice's indolence leaves simple cleaning tasks undone because he habitually avoids effort whenever another person might take over.
Compare an alternative with the original word in each passage. Shared meanings do not make every pair interchangeable.
Synonym reference scope and sources
The groups distinguish the senses selected for this study entry. Closest synonyms and broader related expressions have separate labels. The listed sources support lexical selection; not every phrase is a direct quotation from a source.
How the synonym reference was prepared / WordNet 3.0 license