lax
/læks/
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
- Adjective:
- Not sufficiently strict, severe, or careful: Describes rules, discipline, or standards that are applied without enough firmness or attention to detail.
- Loose, slack, or not tight: Describes something physically lacking in tension, firmness, or tightness.
- Relaxed in articulation (Phonetics): Describes a speech sound, especially a vowel, produced with relatively relaxed muscles of the tongue and jaw.
Examples of Usage
- Describing insufficient strictness:
- The company's lax security procedures led to a data breach.
- Lax enforcement of the traffic laws has made the roads more dangerous.
- Describing physical looseness:
- The rope was too lax to hold the weight securely.
- He gave a lax handshake.
- Describing relaxed articulation (Phonetics):
- The vowel in the word 'bet' is a lax vowel.
Advanced Usage
- "To be lax about something": To not be careful or strict enough regarding a particular rule or standard.
- The manager was lax about checking the safety equipment.
- "Lax attitude": A careless or insufficiently serious approach.
- His lax attitude towards his studies resulted in poor grades.
Variants and Related Words
- Laxity (noun): The state or quality of being lax.
- The laxity of the regulations is concerning.
- Laxness (noun): Another term for laxity.
- There is no excuse for such laxness in patient care.
- Laxative (noun/adjective): A substance that loosens the bowels. (Note: This is a distinct word with a related but specific meaning of "loosening").
- The doctor prescribed a mild laxative.
Synonyms
- Slack: Not tight or strict.
- Negligent: Failing to take proper care.
- Careless: Not giving sufficient attention or thought.
- Permissive: Allowing freedom, especially in behavior.
- Loose: Not firmly or tightly fixed in place.
Antonyms
- Strict: Demanding that rules are obeyed.
- Rigorous: Extremely thorough and careful.
- Taut: Stretched or pulled tight.
- Stringent: Very strict, severe, or limiting.
Related Phrases
- Lax discipline: Discipline that is not strict or is poorly enforced.
- Lax discipline in the classroom can lead to chaos.
- Lax morals: A lack of strict moral principles.
- The novel was criticized for portraying a world of lax morals.
Adjective
- emptying easily or excessively
- loose bowels
- lacking in strength or firmness or resilience
- a lax rope
- a limp handshake
- pronounced with muscles of the tongue and jaw relatively relaxed (e.g., the vowel sound in `bet')
- lacking in rigor or strictness
- such lax and slipshod ways are no longer acceptable
- lax in attending classes
- slack in maintaining discipline