idle | Search Online Etymology Dictionary

84 entries found.

"person who wanders about, idle vagrant, vagabond," 1660s, from tramp (v.). Sense of "steamship which takes cargo wherever it can be traded" (as opposed to one running a regular line) is attested from c. 1880. The meaning "promiscuous woman" is from 1922. Sense of "a long, toilsome walk" is from 1786.

dalliance (n.)

also daliance, mid-14c., daliaunce "edifying or spiritual conversation," from dally + -ance. Probably formed in Anglo-French but not attested there. From late 14c. as "polite conversation, chat, small talk; amorous talk, flirtation, coquetry;" meaning "idle or frivolous activity" is from 1540s.

vacant (adj.)

c. 1300, "not filled, held, or occupied," from Old French vacant "idle, unoccupied" (of an office, etc.), from Latin vacantem (nominative vacans), "empty, unoccupied," present participle of vacare "be empty" (from PIE *wak-, extended form of root *eue- "to leave, abandon, give out"). Meaning "characterized by absence of mental occupation" is from 1570s. Related: Vacantly.

slack (v.)

1510s, "to moderate, make slack," back-formed from slack (adj.) after the original verb veered into the specialized sense of slake. Meaning "be remiss, inactive or idle, fail to exert oneself" is attested from 1540s; current use is probably a re-coining from c. 1904 (see slacker, and compare Old English slacful "lazy," sleacmodnes "laziness"). Related: Slacked; slacking.

jest (n.)

early 13c., geste, "narrative of exploits," from Old French geste "action, exploit," from Latin gesta "deeds," neuter plural of gestus, past participle of gerere "to carry, behave, act, perform" (see gest, which preserves the original sense). Sense descended through "idle tale" (late 15c.) to "mocking speech, raillery" (1540s) to "joke" (1550s). Also "a laughing-stock" (1590s). Jest-book is from 1690s.

yap (v.)

1660s, "bark as a (small) dog," earlier as a noun, "yapping dog" (c. 1600), probably of imitative origin. Compare verb yamph in same sense (1718). Originally in reference to dog sounds; meaning "to talk idle chatter" is first recorded 1886. Related: Yapped; yapping. As a noun, 1826 in reference to the sound; 1900, American English slang as "mouth."

incessant (adj.)

mid-15c., from Old French *incessant or directly from Late Latin incessantem (nominative incessans) "unceasing," from Latin in- "not" (see in- (1)) + cessans, present participle of cessare "to cease, go slow, give over, leave off, be idle," frequentative of cedere (past participle cessus) "go away, withdraw, yield" (from PIE root *ked- "to go, yield"). Related: Incessantly (early 15c.).

argon (n.)

chemical element, 1894, Modern Latin, from Greek argon, neuter of argos "lazy, idle, not working the ground, living without labor," from a- "without" (see a- (3)) + ergon "work," from PIE root *werg- "to do." So called by its discoverers, Baron Rayleigh and Sir William Ramsay, for its inert qualities. They described it as "most astonishingly indifferent."

moon (v.)

c. 1600, "to expose to moonlight;" later "idle about, wander or gaze moodily" (1836), "move listlessly" (1848), probably on the notion also found in moonstruck. The meaning "to flash the buttocks" is recorded by 1968, U.S. student slang, from moon (n.) "buttocks" (1756), "probably from the idea of pale circularity" [Ayto]. See moon (n.). Related: Mooned; mooning.

loll (v.)

mid-14c., lollen "to lounge idly, hang loosely;" late 14c., "rest at ease" (intransitive), a word of uncertain origin; perhaps related to Middle Dutch lollen "to doze, mumble," or somehow imitative of rocking or swinging. Specifically of the tongue from 1610s. Also in extended form lollop (1745). Related: Lolled; lolling. As a noun, from 1709. Lollpoop "A lazy, idle drone" ("Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue") is from 1660s.

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