loiter

English

Etymology

From (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Middle English loitren, from (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Middle Dutch loteren (“to shake, wag, wobble”), ultimately connected with a frequentative form of (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Proto-Germanic *lūtaną (“to bend, stoop, cower, shrink from, decline”), see lout. Cognate with Modern Dutch leuteren (“to dawdle”), Alemannic German lottern (“to wobble”), German Lotterbube (“rascal”). More at lout, little.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈlɔɪtə(ɹ)/
• IPA^(key): /ˈlɔɪtɚ/, [ˈlɔjɾɚ]

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɔɪtə(r)

Verb

loiter (third-person singular simple present loiters, present participle loitering, simple past and past participle loitered)

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

   Synonyms: lepak (Malaysia, Singapore); linger; hang around

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

   • 2015 January 31, Daniel Taylor, “David Silva seizes point for Manchester City as Chelsea are checked”, in The Guardian‎^[1], London, archived from the original on 8 March 2017:

     [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.

Translations

to stand about without any aim or purpose

• Azerbaijani: veyillənmək
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 遊蕩／游荡 (zh) (yóudàng)

• Czech: lelkovat (cs), okounět impf
• Dutch: rondhangen (nl)
• Finnish: maleksia (fi), roikkua (fi), seisoksia, munia (fi)
• French: flâner (fr), traîner (fr)
• Galician: lacazanear (gl)
• German: rumlungern, rumhängen, herumhängen, abhängen (de), herumlungern (de), herumlümmeln, trödeln (de), herumtrödeln, gammeln (de), herumgammeln (de), sich herumdrücken
• Greek:

  Ancient:

• Hungarian: álldogál (hu), lézeng (hu), ácsorog (hu)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Icelandic: slóra (is)
• Italian: attardarsi, aggirarsi (it), gironzolare (it), vagabondare (it), oziare (it), sostare (it), indugiare (it)
• Latin: moror, sedeo
• Maori: paratinaku, whakatinaku, karioi, mōnaroa
• Polish: wałęsać się (pl), kręcić się (pl) impf
• Portuguese: vadiar (pt)
• Russian: торча́ть (ru) impf (torčátʹ), окола́чиваться (ru) impf (okoláčivatʹsja), ошива́ться (ru) impf (ošivátʹsja)
• Spanish: holgazanear (es), perder el tiempo (es), merodear (es), vagar (es), vaguear (es)
• Swedish: driva omkring, driva runt
• Tagalog: mag-ansikot, mag-asikot
• Walloon: holer (wa), trinner (wa)

Anagrams

• Loiret, toiler, triole