lazy (English)

Where does "lazy" come from?

First appearing in English around 1540, the word "lazy" likely stems from the Proto-Indo-European root *las-, meaning "weak." It traveled through the Proto-Germanic term *lasiwaz and Middle Low German "lasich," representing the concepts of feebleness or slackness that evolved into our modern understanding of idleness.

Full etymology tree

• lazy (English), 'Unwilling to do work or make an effort; disinclined to exertion.'
  • derived lasich (Middle Low German)
    • derived las (Middle Low German)
      • inherited lask (Old Saxon)
        • inherited *lasiwaz (Proto-Germanic), 'strengthless; weak'
          • inherited *las- (Proto-Indo-European)
  • derived laysy (Early Modern English)
    • compound lays (English), 'plural of lay'
    • suffix -y (English), 'Added to nouns and adjectives to form adjectives meaning “having the quality of”, either “involving the referent” or “analogous to it”.'

Direct ancestors

• lasiwaz (Proto-Germanic)
• lays (English)
• -y (English)
• leuzig (Dutch)
• lesu (Old English)

Updated June 2026

Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris