Idle vs Standby - What's the difference?
idle | standby |
(lb) Empty, vacant.
Not turned to appropriate use; not occupied.
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Not engaged in any occupation or employment; unemployed; inactive; doing nothing.
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*:Molly the dairymaid came a little way from the rickyard, and said she would pluck the pigeon that very night after work. She was always ready to do anything for us boys; and we could never quite make out why they scolded her so for an idle hussy indoors. It seemed so unjust. Looking back, I recollect she had very beautiful brown eyes.
Averse to work, labor or employment; lazy; slothful.
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*:“I don't mean all of your friends—only a small proportion—which, however, connects your circle with that deadly, idle , brainless bunch—the insolent chatterers at the opera, the gorged dowagers, the worn-out, passionless men, the enervated matrons of the summer capital,!”
Of no importance; useless; worthless; vain; trifling; thoughtless; silly.
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(lb) Light-headed; foolish.
:(Ford)
To spend in idleness; to waste; to consume.
To lose or spend time doing nothing, or without being employed in business.
* 1939 , Joan Evans, Chateaubriand (page 32)
Of an engine: to run at a slow speed, or out of gear; to tick over.
State of readiness without being immediately involved.
(travel) Waiting at the airport in the hope of getting a seat on a flight that is already booked out.
Something that is standard, well-tested, or frequently used.
As verbs the difference between idle and standby
is that idle is to spend in idleness; to waste; to consume while standby is wait briefly: an alternative spelling of nocap=1|lang=en.As an adjective idle
is empty, vacant.As a noun standby is
state of readiness without being immediately involved.idle
English
(wikipedia idle)Adjective
(en adjective)Derived terms
* idle hands are the devil's workshop * idle pulley * idle wheelSynonyms
* See alsoVerb
(idl)- to idle in an IRC channel
- He had already heard of the young man's projected journey — evidently the Comte de Combourg had written many letters while his son idled at St. Malo
References
* *Anagrams
* * *standby
English
Alternative forms
* stand-byNoun
(en noun)- ''The troops were on standby in case of an attack.
- That recipe is an old standby , and she keeps the ingredients around in case of unexpected guests.
Verb
- Standby while I check that for you.