Idle and Working

Opposite meaning words

sentence examples

Idle

Idle adjective - Not being in a state of use, activity, or employment.
Usage example: the car was idle for two weeks while they went on vacation
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Synonyms for Idle
Antonyms for Idle
Working is an antonym for idle in topics: lazy, unoccupied, work, worthless.
Nearby Words: idled, idleness, idler, idling, idly

Working

Working adjective - Being in effective operation.
Usage example: the only working coal mine in the area
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Synonyms for Working
Antonyms for Working
Idle is an antonym for working in active topic.
Nearby Words: work, works, worked, workable, worker
Similar words of idle

Similar words of working

Both words in one sentence

  • Of course, it then backfires by working too well, and his attempts to get someone's attention are changed, by the potion, into inane and idle chatter that person then ignores.
    Source: Beneath Notice
  • Film / Straw Dogs (1971) Working on a book, David withdraws into his study for hours at a time while his bored and idle wife begs for his attention.
    Source: Film / Straw Dogs (1971)
  • Roarke is constantly working on various projects and business deals, despite being more than wealthy enough to be as idle as he'd like to be.
    Source: Literature / In Death
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Cite this Source
Working and Idle. (2016). Retrieved 2026, August 13, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/idle/working
Idle & Working. N.p., 2016. Web. 13 Aug. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/idle/working>.
Working or Idle. 2016. Accessed August 13, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/idle/working.

Antonyms for idle


Antonyms for working

Google Ngram Viewer shows how "idle" and "working" have occurred on timeline