indolent

/ˈɪn.də.lənt/

//ˈɪn.də.lənt// adj

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"indolent" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“indolent” is uncommon English (frequency #69,950 among 2,140 “I” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#69,950
frequency rank, English
2,140
“I” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Habitually lazy, procrastinating, or resistant to physical labor.

Corpus desk

Index EN-indolent · indolent · English

indolent · rank #69,950 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #69,950
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,140
  • PHOTO-FINISH indistinctly

Nearest frequency peer: indistinctly (-1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Long-tail ranks near “indolent”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “indolent” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for indolent
PropertyValue
Headwordindolent
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈɪn.də.lənt/
Letters8
Frequency rank#69,950
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “indolent” in English

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).indolentfalls in this rarity band:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Rare peers in the same band: “indistinctly” (#69,949), “inductively” (#69,951), “impelled” (#69,947). Among 2,140 “I” headwords, “indolent” is #69,950. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

indolent is uncommon English at frequency #69,950 among 2,140 “I” headwords, classed as anadjective, transcribed /ˈɪn.də.lənt/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 4 senses are on record.

The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for indolent, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

Etymologically, the entry records: From French indolent or directly from Late Latin indolēns, from in- (“not”) + dolēns (“hurting”), from doleo (“to hurt”). The later sense of “living easily, slothful” perhaps developed in French. The correct English form is indolent, spelled I-N-D-O-L-E-N-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    Habitually lazy, procrastinating, or resistant to physical labor.
  2. 2
    Inducing laziness.
  3. 3
    Causing little or no physical pain; progressing slowly; inactive (of an ulcer, etc.).
  4. 4
    Healing slowly.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how indolent appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. The indolent girl resisted doing her homework.
  2. Mr. Churchill has pride; but his pride is nothing to his wife’s: his is a quiet, indolent, gentlemanlike sort of pride that would harm nobody, and only make himself a little helpless and tiresome; but her pride is arrogance and insolence!

Etymology

From French indolent or directly from Late Latin indolēns, from in- (“not”) + dolēns (“hurting”), from doleo (“to hurt”). The later sense of “living easily, slothful” perhaps developed in French.

Synonyms

idlework-shylazy

This word in other languages

indolente(Español)indolent(Français)träge(Deutsch)indolente(Português)

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "indolent"?
"indolent" is spelled I-N-D-O-L-E-N-T. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɪn.də.lənt/.
What does "indolent" mean?
As an adjective, "indolent" means: Habitually lazy, procrastinating, or resistant to physical labor.
How do you pronounce "indolent"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "indolent" is /ˈɪn.də.lənt/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "indolent"?
From French indolent or directly from Late Latin indolēns, from in- (“not”) + dolēns (“hurting”), from doleo (“to hurt”). The later sense of “living easily, slothful” perhaps developed in French. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "indolent", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

impelled#69,947illusive#69,945illiquid#69,944Horrocks#69,935

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list