lethargic
English
Alternative forms
- lethargick (obsolete)
Etymology
From Ancient Greek ληθαργικός (lēthargikós), from λήθαργος (lḗthargos, “forgetful, lethargic”), from λήθη (lḗthē, “a forgetting, forgetfulness”) (from which Lethe (“river in Hades”)) + ἀργός (argós, “not working”).
Pronunciation
- (General American, Canada) IPA(key): /ləˈθɑɹd͡ʒɪk/
- (New Zealand) IPA(key): /ləˈθɑːd͡ʒək/
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ləˈθɑː.d͡ʒɪk/
CA synth (file) - Rhymes: -ɑː(ɹ)dʒɪk
Adjective
lethargic (comparative more lethargic, superlative most lethargic)
- sluggish, slow
- 1960, P. G. Wodehouse, Jeeves in the Offing, chapter VII:
- [That cat] hasn't caught a mouse since he was a slip of a kitten. Except when eating, he does nothing but sleep. Lethargic is the word that springs to the lips. If you cast an eye on him, you will see that he's asleep now.
-
- indifferent, apathetic
Synonyms
- torpid
- lazy
- unmoving
Related terms
- alethic, alethiology, philalethia
- lethargy
- Lethe
Translations
sluggish, indifferent
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