/ ˈaɪdl; NAmE / adjective , verb
■ adjective
1.
( of people ) not working hard
SYN lazy :
an idle student
2.
( of machines, factories, etc. ) not in use :
to lie / stand / remain idle
3.
( of people ) without work
SYN unemployed :
Over ten per cent of the workforce is now idle.
4.
[ usually before noun ] with no particular purpose or effect; useless :
idle chatter / curiosity
It was just an idle threat (= not serious) .
It is idle to pretend that their marriage is a success.
5.
[ usually before noun ] ( of time ) not spent doing work or sth particular :
In idle moments, he carved wooden figures.
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IDIOMS
see devil
► idle·ness noun [ U ]:
After a period of enforced idleness, she found a new job.
■ verb
1.
[usually + adv. / prep. ] to spend time doing nothing important :
[ vn ]
They idled the days away, talking and watching television.
[ v ]
They idled along by the river (= walked slowly and with no particular purpose) .
2.
[ v ] ( of an engine ) to run slowly while the vehicle is not moving
SYN tick over :
She left the car idling at the roadside.
3.
[ vn ] ( NAmE ) to close a factory, etc. or stop providing work for the workers, especially temporarily :
The strikes have idled nearly 4 000 workers.
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WORD ORIGIN
Old English īdel empty, useless , of West Germanic origin; related to Dutch ijdel vain, frivolous, useless and German eitel bare, worthless.