Inactive
Inactive adjective - Slow to move or act.
Usage example: it's easiest to catch snakes early in the morning, while they're still cold and inactive
Working
Working adjective - Being in effective operation.
Usage example: the only working coal mine in the area
Both words in one sentence
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The latter is explained in And Another Thing.... He was working through lunch, and flicked a few rubber bands into an inactive particle accelerator.
Source: Noodle Implements -
In 2006, 47% of Glasgow's population lived in the most deprived 15% of areas in Scotland, while the Centre for Social Justice reported 29.4% of the city's working-age residents to be "economically inactive".
Source: Useful Notes / Glasgow
Cite this Source
Working and Inactive. (2016). Retrieved 2026, August 16, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/inactive/working
Inactive & Working. N.p., 2016. Web. 16 Aug. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/inactive/working>.
Working or Inactive. 2016. Accessed August 16, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/inactive/working.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "inactive" and "working" have occurred on timeline