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Sloth definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

SLOTH, n.
1. Slowness; tardiness I abhor this dilatory sloth and tricks of Rome.
2. Disinclination to action or labor; sluggishness; laziness; idleness. They change their course to pleasure, ease and sloth. Sloth, like rust, consumes faster than labor wears.
3. An animal, so called from the remarkable slowness of his motions. There are two species of this animal; the ai or three toed sloth, and the unau or two toed sloth; both found in South America. It is said that its greatest speed seldom exceeds three yard an hour. it feeds on vegetables and ruminates.
SLOTH, v.i. To be idle. [Not in use.]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: a disinclination to work or exert yourself [syn: sloth, slothfulness]
2: 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 [syn: sloth, tree sloth]
3: apathy and inactivity in the practice of virtue (personified as one of the deadly sins) [syn: sloth, laziness, acedia]

Merriam Webster's

noun (plural sloths) Etymology: Middle English slouthe, from slow slow Date: 12th century 1. a. disinclination to action or labor ; indolence b. spiritual apathy and inactivity <the deadly sin of sloth> 2. any of various slow-moving arboreal edentate mammals (genera Bradypus and Choloepus) that inhabit tropical forests of South and Central America, hang from the branches back downward, and feed on leaves, shoots, and fruits — compare three-toed sloth, two-toed sloth

Britannica Concise

Nocturnal, solitary, tree-dwelling mammal (family Bradypodidae), found in S. and Central America. About 2 ft (60 cm) long, sloths have a tiny tail, peglike teeth, long curved claws, and long forelimbs. A green alga grows in the shaggy fur. The four species of three-toed sloths, or ais, eat only leaves of the trumpet tree. The two species of two-toed sloths, or unaus (Choloepus), have two toes on the forelimbs; they eat fruits, stems, and leaves of various plants. Sloths cannot walk. They cling upright to trunks, hang upside down (in which position they sleep some 15 hours a day), or move, extremely slowly (the source of their name), by pulling hand over hand. Their natural camouflage is their chief protection from predators.

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. 1 laziness or indolence; reluctance to make an effort. 2 any slow-moving nocturnal mammal of the family Bradypodidae or Megalonychidae of S. America, having long limbs and hooked claws for hanging upside down from branches of trees. Phrases and idioms: sloth bear a large-lipped black shaggy bear, Melursus ursinus, of India. Etymology: ME f. SLOW + -TH(2)

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Sloth Sloth, n. [OE. slouthe, sleuthe, AS. sl?w?, fr. sl[=a]w slow. See Slow.] 1. Slowness; tardiness. These cardinals trifle with me; I abhor This dilatory sloth and tricks of Rome. --Shak. 2. Disinclination to action or labor; sluggishness; laziness; idleness. [They] change their course to pleasure, ease, and sloth. --Milton. Sloth, like rust, consumes faster than labor wears. --Franklin. 3. (Zo["o]l.) Any one of several species of arboreal edentates constituting the family Bradypodid[ae], and the suborder Tardigrada. They have long exserted limbs and long prehensile claws. Both jaws are furnished with teeth (see Illust. of Edentata), and the ears and tail are rudimentary. They inhabit South and Central America and Mexico. Note: The three-toed sloths belong to the genera Bradypus and Arctopithecus, of which several species have been described. They have three toes on each foot. The best-known species are collared sloth (Bradypus tridactylus), and the ai (Arctopitheus ai). The two-toed sloths, consisting the genus Cholopus, have two toes on each fore foot and three on each hind foot. The best-known is the unau (Cholopus didactylus) of South America. See Unau. Another species (C. Hoffmanni) inhabits Central America. Various large extinct terrestrial edentates, such as Megatherium and Mylodon, are often called sloths. Australian, or Native sloth (Zo["o]l.), the koala. Sloth animalcule (Zo["o]l.), a tardigrade. Sloth bear (Zo["o]l.), a black or brown long-haired bear (Melursus ursinus, or labiatus), native of India and Ceylon; -- called also aswail, labiated bear, and jungle bear. It is easily tamed and can be taught many tricks. Sloth monkey (Zo["o]l.), a loris.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Sloth Sloth, n. [OE. slouthe, sleuthe, AS. sl?w?, fr. sl[=a]w slow. See Slow.] 1. Slowness; tardiness. These cardinals trifle with me; I abhor This dilatory sloth and tricks of Rome. --Shak. 2. Disinclination to action or labor; sluggishness; laziness; idleness. [They] change their course to pleasure, ease, and sloth. --Milton. Sloth, like rust, consumes faster than labor wears. --Franklin. 3. (Zo["o]l.) Any one of several species of arboreal edentates constituting the family Bradypodid[ae], and the suborder Tardigrada. They have long exserted limbs and long prehensile claws. Both jaws are furnished with teeth (see Illust. of Edentata), and the ears and tail are rudimentary. They inhabit South and Central America and Mexico. Note: The three-toed sloths belong to the genera Bradypus and Arctopithecus, of which several species have been described. They have three toes on each foot. The best-known species are collared sloth (Bradypus tridactylus), and the ai (Arctopitheus ai). The two-toed sloths, consisting the genus Cholopus, have two toes on each fore foot and three on each hind foot. The best-known is the unau (Cholopus didactylus) of South America. See Unau. Another species (C. Hoffmanni) inhabits Central America. Various large extinct terrestrial edentates, such as Megatherium and Mylodon, are often called sloths. Australian, or Native sloth (Zo["o]l.), the koala. Sloth animalcule (Zo["o]l.), a tardigrade. Sloth bear (Zo["o]l.), a black or brown long-haired bear (Melursus ursinus, or labiatus), native of India and Ceylon; -- called also aswail, labiated bear, and jungle bear. It is easily tamed and can be taught many tricks. Sloth monkey (Zo["o]l.), a loris.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Sloth Sloth, v. i. To be idle. [Obs.] --Gower.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(sloths) 1. Sloth is laziness, especially with regard to work. (FORMAL) He admitted a lack of motivation and a feeling of sloth. = idleness N-UNCOUNT 2. A sloth is an animal from Central and South America. Sloths live in trees and move very slowly. N-COUNT

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

n. 1. Slowness, tardiness, dilatoriness. 2. Inactivity, inaction, laziness, indolence, idleness, inertness, sluggishness, torpor, lumpishness, supineness, slothfulness.

Moby Thesaurus

Chiroptera, Lagomorpha, Primates, Rodentia, accidia, acedia, aloofness, anger, apathy, army, ataraxia, ataraxy, avarice, avaritia, benumbedness, blah, blahs, boredom, bunch, carelessness, casualness, cautiousness, cave of Trophonius, cave of despair, circumspection, colony, comatoseness, creeping, deadly sin, deliberateness, deliberation, despair, desperateness, desperation, despondency, detachment, dilatoriness, disconsolateness, disinterest, dispassion, disregard, disregardfulness, do-nothingness, drawl, drift, drive, drove, drowsiness, dullness, easygoingness, enervation, ennui, envy, ergophobia, faineancy, faineantise, fatigue, flock, foot-dragging, forlornness, gam, gang, gluttony, greed, gula, heartlessness, heaviness, hebetude, heedlessness, herd, hoboism, hopelessness, host, idleness, idling, inanimation, inappetence, inattention, inattentiveness, incuriosity, indifference, indiscrimination, indolence, inertia, inertness, inexcitability, inexertion, insouciance, invidia, ira, jadedness, just being, kennel, lack of affect, lack of appetite, lackadaisicalness, laggardness, languidness, languishment, languor, languorousness, lassitude, laze, laziness, lazing, leisureliness, lenitude, lentitude, lentor, lethargicalness, lethargy, lifelessness, listlessness, litter, loafing, lotus-eating, lust, luxuria, mere existence, mere tropism, mindlessness, negligence, no exit, no way, no way out, nonchalance, numbness, oscitancy, pack, passiveness, passivity, phlegm, phlegmaticalness, phlegmaticness, plucklessness, pococurantism, pod, pokiness, pride, recklessness, regardlessness, reluctance, remissness, resignation, resignedness, satedness, school, shiftlessness, shoal, skulk, slackness, sleepiness, slothfulness, slouch, slowness, sluggardy, sluggishness, somnolence, sopor, soporifousness, spiritlessness, spring fever, spunklessness, stagnation, stupefaction, stupor, superbia, supineness, tentativeness, torpidity, torpidness, torpitude, torpor, trip, troop, unanxiousness, unconcern, unmindfulness, unsolicitousness, vagrancy, vegetation, weariness, withdrawnness, world-weariness, wrath