unwillingness to work in order to be successful.
She was an incredibly SHIFTLESS girl; she was trying to get paid without actually doing her job.
shilly-shally
(SHIL-ee-shal-ee)
VERB: To vacillate or be indecisive; to waste time or dawdle.
shirker
(SHUR-ker)
NOUN: One who ignores his or her responsibilities; dawdler.
shuteye
(SHUHT-aye)
NOUN: Another word for sleep or slumber.
siesta
(see-ES-tuh)
NOUN: A nap taken in the early afternoon.
sinecure
(SAHY-ni-kyoor)
NOUN: A job that pays well but requires very little work.
skulk
(skuhlk)
VERB: To move around in a secret, stealthy manner; as a noun in the U.K. it refers to a shirker, or someone who avoids his or her responsibilities.
slack
(slak)
ADJECTIVE: Being loose or relaxed, not taut (as in a rope); lacking in energy or vitality.
slacker
(slak-er)
NOUN: One who spends his or her days in an idle manner; malingerer.
James was a SLACKER in school and refused to pay attention or do any of his assignments.
slapdash
(SLAP-dash)
ADJECTIVE: Haphazard; disorganized.
sleep-inducing
(sleep-in-DOOS-ing)
ADJECTIVE: Something that causes sleep; soporific.
sleepy
(SLEE-pee)
ADJECTIVE: Wanting to go to sleep; drowsy.
slipshod
(SLIP-shod)
ADJECTIVE: Sloppy; careless; slapdash.
The kitchen had a SLIPSHOD appearance; the sink was piled high with dishes, the floor was covered with papers and food, and the oven was open.
slog
(slog)
VERB: Trudge; to work at something for a long time with few results.
slothful
(SLAWTH-fuhl)
ADJECTIVE: Lazy; showing a disinclination to work or exertion.
slouch
(slouch)
VERB: To stand in a nonupright, drooping fashion; as a noun, a
slouch
is someone who does not care to do something well, a loafer.
When you SLOUCH like that, you wrinkle your clothes and ruin your posture.
slowcoach
(SLOH-kohch)
NOUN: Someone who moves very slowly; a laggard.
slowgoing
(SLOH-GOH-ing)
ADJECTIVE: Happening at a slow pace.
slowness
(SLOH-nis)
NOUN: Characterized by being slow; laggardness.
slowpoke
(SLOH-pohk)
NOUN: Someone who moves very slowly; slowcoach.
slug
(sluhg)
NOUN: A slow-moving mollusk or a person who behaves in a similarly “sluggish” manner.
slugabed
(SLUHG-uh-bed)
NOUN: A person who likes to sleep in past a normal hour.
Henrietta was such a SLUGABED that she would still be sleeping hours after we had all had our breakfast.
sluggard
(SLUHG-erd)
NOUN: One who avoids work and other responsibilities.
sluggish
(SLUHG-ish)
ADJECTIVE: Slow-moving; lethargic and listless.
slumberland
(SLUHM-ber-land)
NOUN: The imaginary place kids are told they visit when they fall asleep.
slumberous
(SLUHM-ber-uhs)
ADJECTIVE: Drowsiness; sleepiness.
snooze
(snooz)
NOUN: A short nap; used as a verb it means to take a short nap.
somnambulism
(som-NAM-byuh-liz-uhm)
NOUN: The technical phrase for sleepwalking; noctambulism.
somniferous
(som-NIF-er-uhs)
ADJECTIVE: Having the ability to cause sleepiness.
“I find this conversation SOMNIFEROUS, so I am going to bed,” she sighed.
somnolent
(SOM-nuh-luhnt)
ADJECTIVE: Drowsy or sleepy; quiet.
soporific
(sop-uh-RIF-ik)
ADJECTIVE: Having the ability to cause sleepiness. As a noun, it refers to the thing that causes sleepiness—like a drug.
spiritless
(SPIR-it-lis)
ADJECTIVE: Lacking courage or vitality.
sponger
(SPUHN-jer)
NOUN: One who lives off of others for all his or her needs; freeloader.
squander
(SKWON-der)
VERB: To waste something in an extravagant manner.
He was known to SQUANDER their modest income on elaborate meals and entertainment.
stagnation
(stag-NAY-shuhn)
NOUN: A cessation in movement or activity; stasis.
standstill
(STAND-stil)
NOUN: A point in time at which all movement and activity stops.
The afternoon was at a STANDSTILL as we all were lulled into a heavy sleep with our full bellies.
stasis
(STAY-SIS)
NOUN: A state during which there is no movement, development, or progression; in science, this can be the result of two forces balancing each other