idleness
English
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idleness
- /ˈaɪdəlnəs/
Where it comes from
From Middle English ydelnesse, from Old English īdelnes, from Proto-West Germanic *īdlanassī, equivalent to idle + -ness. Cognate with Old Frisian īdelnisse (“idelness”), obsolete Dutch ijdelnis, Old Saxon īdalnussi (“idleness, vanity”), Old High German ītalnissa (“idleness, vanity, emptiness”).
noun idlenesses
- The state of being idle; inactivity. Opposite to exercise is idleness (the badge of gentry) or want of exercise, the bane of body and mind, the nurse of naughtiness, stepmother of discipline, the chief author of all mischief, one of the seven deadly sins, and a sole cause of this and many other maladies, the devil's cushion, […].
- The state of being indolent; indolence. For either they be puffed vp vvith pride, / Or fraught vvith enuie that their galls do ſvvell, / Or they their dayes to ydleneſſe diuide, / Or drovvnded lie in pleaſures vvaſtefull vvell, / In vvhich like Moldvvarps [i.e., moles] nouſling ſtill they lurke, / Vnmyndfull of chiefe parts of manlineſſe,
- Groundlessness; worthlessness; triviality; vanity; frivolity.
Translations
Every language
noun state of being idle; inactivity
| Español | inactividad, holganza |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 한가 han'ga |
| हिन्दी | निष्क्रियता niṣkriytā |
| Português | inatividade, ócio |
| Français | oisiveté, inactivité |
| Deutsch | Untätigkeit, Stillstand, Müßiggang |
| Italiano | ozio |
| Русский | просто́й prostój, безде́лье bezdélʹje |
noun state of being indolent
| Español | indolencia |
|---|---|
| Português | indolência |
| Français | indolence |
| Deutsch | Trägheit, Arbeitsunwilligkeit, Indolenz, Faulheit |
| Italiano | indolenza, pigrizia, oziosità |
| Русский | праздность prazdnostʹ, леность lenostʹ |
noun groundlessness; worthlessness; triviality
| Français | inutilité, futilité, trivialité |
|---|---|
| Deutsch | Nutzlosigkeit |
| Italiano | inutilità |
| Русский | бесплодность besplodnostʹ, бесполезность bespoleznostʹ |
Talk about this word "idleness." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/idleness. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. idleness. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/idleness "idleness." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/idleness.Cite this
@misc{idleness_2026,
title = {idleness},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/idleness},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
