idle

/ˈaɪdl/ adjective

Definition

NOT WORKING › not working or being used: The factory has stood idle for over a year.

NOT SERIOUS [always before noun] › not serious or having no real purpose: idle gossip This is no idle threat.

LAZY › lazy and not willing to work: He knows what has to be done, he's just bone idle (= extremely lazy).

idleness noun [U] idly adverb › We cannot stand idly by (= not do anything) and let this plan go ahead.

(Definition of idle adjective from the Cambridge Learner's Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

real or true

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