Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun Aversion to work or exertion; laziness; indolence.
- noun Any of various slow-moving, arboreal mammals of the suborder Folivora of South and Central America, having long hooklike claws by which they hang upside down from tree branches, and feeding on leaves, buds, and fruit, especially.
- noun A member of the genus Bradypus, having three long-clawed toes on each forefoot.
- noun A member of the genus Choloepus, having two toes on each forefoot.
- noun A group of bears.
from The Century Dictionary.
- To be idle or slothful.
- To delay.
- noun Slowness; tardiness.
- noun Disinclination to action or labor; sluggishness; habitual indolence; laziness; idleness.
- noun A company: said of bears.
- noun A South American tardigrade edentate mammal of the family Bradypodidæ: so called from their slow and apparently awkward or clumsy movements.
- noun One of the gigantic fossil gravigrade edentates, as a megatherium or mylodon. See cut under
Mylodon . - noun Synonyms Indolence, inertness, torpor, lumpishness. See
idle . - noun A Middle English form of
sleuth .
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- intransitive verb obsolete To be idle.
- noun Slowness; tardiness.
- noun Disinclination to action or labor; sluggishness; laziness; idleness.
- noun (Zoöl.) Any one of several species of arboreal edentates constituting the family
Bradypodidæ , and the suborder Tardigrada. They have long exserted limbs and long prehensile claws. Both jaws are furnished with teeth (seeIllust. ofEdentata ), and the ears and tail are rudimentary. They inhabit South and Central America and Mexico. - noun (Zoöl.) the koala.
- noun (Zoöl.) a tardigrade.
- noun (Zoöl.) a black or brown long-haired bear (
Melursus ursinus , orMelursus labiatus ), native of India and Ceylon; -- called alsoaswail ,labiated bear , andjungle bear . It is easily tamed and can be taught many tricks. - noun (Zoöl.) a loris.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun uncountable
Laziness ; slowness in the mindset. - noun countable A
herbivorous ,arboreal South Americanmammal of the familiesMegalonychidae andBradypodidae , noted for its slowness and inactivity. - noun rare A collective term for a group of
bears . - verb obsolete, intransitive To be
idle .
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun a disinclination to work or exert yourself
- noun any of several slow-moving arboreal mammals of South America and Central America; they hang from branches back downward and feed on leaves and fruits
- noun apathy and inactivity in the practice of virtue (personified as one of the deadly sins)
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
Support
Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word sloth.
Examples
-
In a world where an internet search for the word "sloth" delivers 8 million results in 0.06 of a second, the taskforce of old suddenly has a whiff of second-class post about it.
-
There's a big floppy rabbit, slumped with the word "sloth" written across his giant paws.
-
The use of the English word "sloth" gets the focus away from sadness.
-
The use of the English word "sloth" gets the focus away from sadness.
-
People don’t tend to use the word sloth anymore, yet the Bible speaks in very strong terms about the issue of slothfulness or laziness.
Living on the Edge Chip Ingram 2009
-
Sid the sloth is one of the best characters to come along in a long time.
-
And the logical remedy for competitive sloth is stiffened antitrust enforcement.
Ian Fletcher: Is a Flat Tariff the Answer to America's Trade Mess? Ian Fletcher 2010
-
And the logical remedy for competitive sloth is stiffened antitrust enforcement.
Ian Fletcher: Is a Flat Tariff the Answer to America's Trade Mess? Ian Fletcher 2010
-
Sid the sloth is one of the best characters to come along in a long time.
-
Sid the sloth is one of the best characters to come along in a long time.
John Brown – the author’s official site » 2010 » April » 04 2010
chained_bear commented on the word sloth
Usage note:
"...leaving them on a broad veranda with a number of domesticated creatures on it, marmosets of three different kinds, an old bald toucan, a row of sleepy parrots, something hairy in the background that might have been a sloth or an anteater or even a doormat but that it farted from time to time, looking around censoriously on each occasion, and a strikingly elegant blue heron that walked in and out."
--Patrick O'Brian, The Far Side of the World, 177
February 21, 2008
bilby commented on the word sloth
On your shoulder.
September 7, 2008
chained_bear commented on the word sloth
*weejies* !!! Cute overload!
September 7, 2008
milosrdenstvi commented on the word sloth
So much a more delightful word when pronounced with long O.
December 7, 2010
qms commented on the word sloth
A Brit will blame you for your sloth
And call for action with an oath.
But cross the North Atlantic froth
And hear the Yank condemn your sloth.
The language is no tailored cloth
But bubbles like a homemade broth.
The Web promotes organic growth,
So Wordnik wisely sanctions both.
December 22, 2015