lag

• POS: Noun, Verb (usu participle)
• COUNT in NET: 1 in 1 verses (in NT : 1 in 1 verses)

CIDE DICTIONARY

lag, a. [Of Celtic origin: cf. Gael. & Ir. lagweak, feeble, faint, W. llag, llac, slack, loose, remiss, sluggish; prob. akin to E. lax, languid.].

•  Coming tardily after or behind; slow; tardy.  [1913 Webster]

  "Came too lag to see him buried."  [1913 Webster]
•  Last; long-delayed; -- obsolete, except in the phrase lag end.  Shak.  [1913 Webster]
•  Last made; hence, made of refuse; inferior.  Dryden.  [1913 Webster]

lag, n. 

•  One who lags; that which comes in last.  Pope.  [1913 Webster]
•  The fag-end; the rump; hence, the lowest class.  [1913 Webster]

  "The common lag of people."  [1913 Webster]
•  The amount of retardation of anything, as of a valve in a steam engine, in opening or closing.  [1913 Webster]
•  A stave of a cask, drum, etc.;  [1913 Webster]
•  See Graylag.  [1913 Webster]
•  The failing behind or retardation of one phenomenon with respect to another to which it is closely related; as, the lag of magnetization compared with the magnetizing force (hysteresis); the lag of the current in an alternating circuit behind the impressed electro-motive force which produced it.  [Webster 1913 Suppl.]

Lag of the tide, the interval by which the time of high water falls behind the mean time, in the first and third quarters of the moon; -- opposed to priming of the tide, or the acceleration of the time of high water, in the second and fourth quarters; depending on the relative positions of the sun and moon. -- Lag screw, an iron bolt with a square head, a sharp-edged thread, and a sharp point, adapted for screwing into wood; a screw for fastening lags.

lag, v. i. 

 To walk or more slowly; to stay or fall behind; to linger or loiter.  Milton.

Syn. -- To loiter; linger; saunter; delay; be tardy.

lag, v. t. 

•  To cause to lag; to slacken.  Heywood.  [1913 Webster]
•  To cover, as the cylinder of a steam engine, with lags. See Lag, n., 4.  [1913 Webster]

lag, n. 

 One transported for a crime.  [1913 Webster]

lag, v. t. 

 To transport for crime.  [1913 Webster]
"She lags us if we poach."  [1913 Webster]

OXFORD DICTIONARY

lag, v. & n.
--v.intr. (lagged, lagging)
1 (often foll. by behind) fall behind; not keep pace.
2 US Billiards make the preliminary strokes that decide which player shall begin.
--n.
1 a delay.
2 Physics a retardation in a current or movement. b the amount of this.

Idiom

lag of tide the interval by which a tide falls behind mean time at the 1st and 3rd quarters of the moon (cf. PRIMING(2)).

Derivative

lagger n.

lag, v. & n.
--v.tr. (lagged, lagging) enclose or cover in lagging.
--n.
1 the non-heat-conducting cover of a boiler etc.; lagging.
2 a piece of this.

lag, n. & v. sl.
--n. (esp. as old lag) a habitual convict.
--v.tr. (lagged, lagging)
1 send to prison.
2 apprehend; arrest.

Etymology

19th c.: orig. unkn.

THESAURUS

lag

afterthought, antedate, arrest, be found wanting, bind, block, blockage, bureaucratic delay, cast out, check, closing, collapse, come short, con, concluding, confine, dalliance, dally, dallying, dawdle, dawdling, dead time, deceleration, decline, delay, delayage, delayed reaction, deport, detain, detention, diddle, dilatoriness, dillydally, dillydallying, displace, doodle, double take, drag, dragging, ease-off, ease-up, eventual, exile, expatriate, expel, fail, fall away, fall behind, fall short, falter, final, flag, flagging, foredate, gain, get behind, goof off, halt, hang back, hang-up, hinder, hindmost, hindrance, hold back, hold up, holdup, hysteresis, impede, interim, jailbird, jam, keep back, lack, lagging, latest, latter, letdown, letup, linger, linger behind, lingering, logjam, loiter, loitering, lollygag, lollygagging, lose ground, loser, make late, minus acceleration, misdate, mistime, moratorium, not answer, not hack it, not make it, not make out, not measure up, not stretch, not suffice, obstruct, obstruction, output lag, paperasserie, pause, piddle, poke, postdate, process lag, procrastinate, procrastination, put off, red tape, red-tapeism, red-tapery, relegate, reprieve, respite, retard, retardance, retardation, retardment, run short, setback, shilly-shally, shilly-shallying, slack-up, slacken, slackening, slow, slow down, slow-up, slowdown, slowing, slowing down, slowness, slowup, slump, stay, stay of execution, stop, stop short, stoppage, straggle, suspension, tarry, tarrying, terminal, throughput, tie-up, time constants, time lag, time lead, trail, trail behind, transport, ultimate, wait, want, waste time

ROGET THESAURUS

lag

Inactivity

N inactivity, inaction, inertness, obstinacy, lull, quiescence, rust, rustiness, idleness, remissness, sloth, indolence, indiligence, dawdling, ergophobia, otiosity, dullness, languor, segnity, segnitude, lentor, sluggishness, procrastination, torpor, torpidity, torpescence, stupor, somnolence, drowsiness, nodding, oscitation, oscitancy, pandiculation, hypnotism, lethargy, statuvolence heaviness, heavy eyelids, sleep, slumber, sound sleep, heavy sleep, balmy sleep, Morpheus, Somnus, coma, trance, ecstasis, dream, hibernation, nap, doze, snooze, siesta, wink of sleep, forty winks, snore, hypnology, dull work, pottering, relaxation, Castle of Indolence, lullaby, sedative, tranquilizer, hypnotic, sleeping pill, relaxant, anaesthetic, general anaesthetic, torpedo, idler, drone, droil, dawdle, mopus, do- little faineant, dummy, sleeping partner, afternoon farmer, truant, bummer, loafer, goldbrick, goldbicker, lounger, lazzarone, lubber, lubbard, slow coach (slow, ), opium eater, lotus eater, slug, lag, sluggard, slugabed, slumberer, dormouse, marmot, waiter on Providence, fruges consumere natus, inactive, motionless, unoccupied, unbusied, indolent, lazy, slothful, idle, lusk, remiss, slack, inert, torpid, sluggish, otiose, languid, supine, heavy, dull, leaden, lumpish, exanimate, soulless, listless, drony, dronish, lazy as Ludlam's dog, dilatory, laggard, lagging, slow, rusty, flagging, lackadaisical, maudlin, fiddle-faddle, pottering, shilly-shally, sleeping asleep, fast asleep, dead asleep, sound asleep, in a sound sleep, sound as a top, dormant, comatose, in the arms of Morpheus, in the lap of Morpheus, sleepy, sleepful, dozy, drowsy, somnolent, torpescent, lethargic, lethargical, somnifacient, statuvolent, statuvolic, heavy, heavy with sleep, napping, somnific, somniferous, soporous, soporific, soporiferous, hypnotic, balmy, dreamy, unawakened, unawakened, sedative, inactively, at leisure, the eyes begin to draw straws, bankrupt of life yet prodigal of ease, better 50 years of Europe than a cycle of Cathay, idly busy rolls their world away, the mystery of folded sleep, the timely dew of sleep, thou driftest gently down the tides of sleep, tired Nature's sweet restorer, balmy sleep.

VB be inactive, do nothing, move slowly, let the grass grow under one's feet, take one's time, dawdle, drawl, droil, lag, hang back, slouch, loll, lollop, lounge, poke, loaf, loiter, go to sleep over, sleep at one's post, ne battre que d'une aile, take it easy, take things as they come, lead an easy life, vegetate, swim with the stream, eat the bread of idleness, loll in the lap of luxury, loll in the lap of indolence, waste time, consume time, kill time, lose time, burn daylight, waste the precious hours, idle away time, trifle away time, fritter away time, fool away time, spend time in, take time in, peddle, piddle, potter, pudder, dabble, faddle fribble, fiddle-faddle, dally, dilly-dally, sleep, slumber, be asleep, hibernate, oversleep, sleep like a top, sleep like a log, sleep like a dormouse, sleep soundly, heavily, doze, drowze, snooze, nap, take a nap, dream, snore one's best, settle to sleep, go to sleep, go off to sleep, doze off, drop off, fall asleep, drop asleep, close the eyes, seal up the eyes, seal up eyelids, weigh down the eyelids, get sleep, nod, yawn, go to bed, turn, get some z's, stack z's, languish, expend itself, flag, hang fire, relax, render idle, sluggardize, mitigate.

Slowness

VB move slowly, creep, crawl, lag, slug, drawl, linger, loiter, saunter, plod, trudge, stump along, lumber, trail, drag, dawdle, grovel, worm one's way, steal along, job on, rub on, bundle on, toddle, waddle, wabble, slug, traipse, slouch, shuffle, halt, hobble, limp, caludicate, shamble, flag, falter, trotter, stagger, mince, step short, march in slow time, march in funeral procession, take one's time, hang fire, retard, relax, slacken, check, moderate, rein in, curb, reef, strike sail, shorten sail, take in sail, put on the drag, apply the brake, clip the wings, reduce the speed, slacken speed, slacken one's pace, lose ground.