- slack and idle
- Canadian Slangpersonnel without motivation or grossly out of shape
English dialects glossary. 2013.
slack and idle
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slack — slack1 [slak] adj. [ME slakke < OE slæc, akin to Du slak < IE base * (s)lēg , loose, slack > L laxus, lax] 1. slow; idle; sluggish 2. barely moving: said of a current, as of air or water 3. characterized by little work, trade, or… … English World dictionary
slack — slack, slacken Both words have been in use since the 16c, and remain interchangeable in many meanings. There are, however, some areas of preference: slacken is generally more dominant in the sense ‘to make or become slack (or slacker)’: a breeze … Modern English usage
Slack — This interesting surname has two origins; firstly, it may be of Old Norse origin, from a topographical name for someone who lived in a shallow valley, deriving from the Northern Middle English slack , a development of the Old Norse slakki , or it … Surnames reference
idle — [OE] ‘Lazy’ is only a secondary meaning of idle. It originally meant ‘useless, worthless’ (as in ‘idle threats’), and the sense ‘lazy’ did not develop until the 13th century (the Old English words for ‘lazy’ were slow and slack). Idle is shared… … The Hutchinson dictionary of word origins
idle — [OE] ‘Lazy’ is only a secondary meaning of idle. It originally meant ‘useless, worthless’ (as in ‘idle threats’), and the sense ‘lazy’ did not develop until the 13th century (the Old English words for ‘lazy’ were slow and slack). Idle is shared… … Word origins
idle pulley — noun a pulley on a shaft that presses against a guide belt to guide or tighten it • Syn: ↑idler pulley, ↑idle wheel • Hypernyms: ↑pulley, ↑pulley block, ↑pulley block, ↑block * * * Mach. a loose pulley made to press or rest on a belt in order to … Useful english dictionary
slack — Synonyms and related words: Laodicean, Micawberish, Olympian, Paphian, abandon, abate, abatement, abeyant, aloof, ambling, anemic, apathetic, asthenic, backward, bagging, baggy, bate, beat up, bedraggled, behindhand, benumbed, blah, blase,… … Moby Thesaurus
idle — Synonyms and related words: abortive, absurd, airy, amble, ambling, asinine, asleep, at a standstill, at anchor, at leisure, at liberty, at loose ends, available, baseless, be a sideliner, be still, bootless, brogue, bum, bum around, catchpenny,… … Moby Thesaurus
idle — I (New American Roget s College Thesaurus) adj. vain, useless, futile, fruitless, pointless, aimless; out of work, unemployed, inactive, at rest; vacant, empty. See inactivity, uselessness, unimportance.Ant., active, busy. II (Roget s IV) modif.… … English dictionary for students
(s)lēg- : (s)lǝg- and (s)leg- — (s)lēg : (s)lǝg and (s)leg English meaning: weak, feeble Deutsche Übersetzung: ‘schlaff, matt sein” (from “loslassen”), from ‘schlaff” about “weichlich” also “wollũstig” Note: nasal. (s)leng (= leng ‘swing, waver”?) Material … Proto-Indo-European etymological dictionary
