laze

/leɪz/

//leɪz// verb

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

"laze" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“laze” is uncommon English (frequency #78,774 among 2,297 “L” headwords), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#78,774
frequency rank, English
2,297
“L” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To be lazy, waste time.

Corpus desk

Index EN-laze · laze · English

laze · rank #78,774 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #78,774
  • LEN-MID 4 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,297
  • PHOTO-FINISH lavage

Nearest frequency peer: lavage (-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 “laze”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for laze
PropertyValue
Headwordlaze
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/leɪz/
Letters4
Frequency rank#78,774
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “laze” in English

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).lazefalls in this rarity band:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Rare peers in the same band: “lavage” (#78,773), “lastest” (#78,772), “lectureship” (#78,776). Among 2,297 “L” headwords, “laze” is #78,774. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

laze is uncommon English at frequency #78,774 among 2,297 “L” headwords, classed as averb, transcribed /leɪz/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

No misspelling variants are generated for laze in our index, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: Back-formation from lazy. The correct English form is laze, spelled L-A-Z-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    To be lazy, waste time.
  2. 2
    To pass time relaxing; to relax, lounge.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Behold by millions how thy men do fall Before Alphonsus like to sillie sheepe. And canst thou stand still lazing in this sort?
  2. And, lastly, such are they; that, having got Wealth, Knowledge, and those other Gifts, which may Advance the Publike-Good, yet, use them not; But Feede, and Sleepe, and laze their time away.

Etymology

Back-formation from lazy.

Synonyms

idleloaftake it easyloungewhile away

This word in other languages

holgazanear(Español)Däumchen drehen(Deutsch)vadiar(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 "laze"?
"laze" is spelled L-A-Z-E. The IPA pronunciation is /leɪz/.
What does "laze" mean?
As a verb, "laze" means: To be lazy, waste time.
How do you pronounce "laze"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "laze" is /leɪz/. 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 "laze"?
Back-formation from lazy. 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 "laze", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 4 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

luan#78,794Masi#78,808jota#78,738Odum#78,887

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list