lazy-bones

A lazy-bones lounges in a hammock all afternoon.

Definition

Noun (informal): A lazy person; someone who is habitually idle or avoids work or exertion.

Usage Examples

• (A teasing way to address someone who is being idle.)
• (Describes a person who avoids physical effort.)
• (A mild reprimand to someone who is procrastinating.)

Advanced Usage

• "to call someone a lazy-bones": to accuse someone of being lazy, often in a playful or affectionate manner.
  • She called him a lazy-bones for sleeping until noon. (She teasingly scolded him for oversleeping.)

Variants and Related Words

• Lazy (adj): unwilling to work or use energy.
  • He is too lazy to walk to the store. (He avoids physical effort.)
• Bones (n, plural): the hard parts of the body that form the skeleton.
  • The dog buried the bones in the garden. (Literal use, not related to laziness.)
• Laziness (n): the quality of being lazy.
  • His laziness cost him his job. (Habitual idleness.)

Synonyms

• Idler: a person who avoids work or spends time doing nothing.
  • He was known as an idler around the office. (A lazy person.)
• Sluggard: a lazy, slow-moving person.
  • The sluggard never finished his tasks on time. (A habitually lazy person.)
• Couch potato: someone who spends a lot of time sitting or lying down, usually watching television.
  • After work, he becomes a couch potato. (A sedentary, lazy person.)

Related Idioms

• "Lazy as a sloth": extremely lazy, comparing to the slow-moving sloth.
  • He is as lazy as a sloth; he never gets up before noon. (Very idle.)
• "Bone idle": extremely lazy; unwilling to make any effort.
  • She is bone idle and won't even lift a finger. (Completely lazy.)

Phrasal Verbs

• Laze around: to spend time relaxing or doing nothing.
  • They spent the whole weekend lazing around the house. (Being idle.)
• Laze about: to be idle or inactive.
  • Stop lazing about and help me clean the garage. (Avoiding work.)