Loiter

/ˈlɔɪtə(ɹ)/ · verb

Meaning

To stand about without any aim or purpose; to stand about idly..

Definitions by Sense

1. To stand about without any aim or purpose; to stand about idly.
2. (archaic) To stroll about without any aim or purpose, to ramble, to wander.
3. To remain at a certain place instead of moving on.
4. (military, aviation) For an aircraft to remain in the air near a target.
5. A standing or strolling about without any aim or purpose.

Example Sentences

For some reason, they discourage loitering outside the store, but encourage it inside.

With weary steps I loiter on, ⁠Tho’ always under alter’d skies ⁠The purple from the distance dies, My prospect and horizon gone.

The dancing, which had been suspended, now recommenced with additional animation, and De Candale claimed Francesca's hand; but the rooms were crowded, and they stood for some time loitering on one of the terraces.

For on what does the whole vast and varied membership of the craft rest? It rests, of course, on the little boys whom you see any day loitering about on the far end of station platforms in every part of the British Isles, each one with his grubby notebook and blunt pencil, and his list of all the engines on the railway system, collecting their numbers and names in the vain hope that one day he will have collected them all.

[Sergio] Agüero, as usual, was loitering with intent and swung his left foot at the ball. The shot was going wide but [David] Silva was there to apply the decisive touch inside the six-yard area.

Using the transect method, the counter had to maintain a general progress along the transect and was not able to loiter at one spot for too long.

Oh, Sir, we just got up in the morning and had a loiter and a pipe on the green; then we got our breakfasts; […]

Synonyms for loiter

Antonyms for loiter

Related Words

Word Forms

• loiters
• loitering
• loitered

Usage Notes

Choose a synonym only when it preserves the intended meaning, tone, and grammar of the full sentence.

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