Definition of SLOTH

sloth

Plural: sloths

Noun

  • Extreme laziness; a slow-moving, tree-dwelling mammal.
  • a disinclination to work or exert yourself
  • 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
  • apathy and inactivity in the practice of virtue (personified as one of the deadly sins)
  • Laziness; slowness in the mindset; disinclination to action or labour.
  • Any animal in the suborder Folivora.
  • Any herbivorous, arboreal South American mammal of the families Choloepodidae and Bradypodidae, noted for its slowness and inactivity.
  • Any animal in the suborder Folivora.
  • Any of the extinct group of ground sloths.
  • A group of bears.

Verb

  • To be idle; to idle (away time).

Examples

  • His Scrabble opponent’s sloth in making moves made the game drag on forever.

Origin / Etymology

From Middle English slouthe, slewthe (“laziness”), from Old English slǣwþ (“sloth, indolence, laziness, inertness, torpor”), from Proto-West Germanic *slaiwiþu, from Proto-Germanic *slaiwiþō (“slowness, lateness”), equivalent to slow + -th (abstract nominal suffix). Cognate with Scots sleuth (“sloth, slowness”).

Synonyms

acedia, laziness, slothfulness, tree sloth, tardigrade

Antonyms

diligence

Scrabble Score: 8

sloth: valid Scrabble (US) TWL Word
sloth: valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
sloth: valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary

Words With Friends Score: 8

sloth: valid Words With Friends Word