leisurely

1 of 2

adverb

lei·​sure·​ly ˈlē-zhər-lē 

ˈle-,

ˈlā-

: without haste : deliberately

leisurely

2 of 2

adjective

: characterized by leisure : unhurried

a leisurely pace

leisureliness noun

Synonyms

Adverb

• laggardly
• pokily
• slow
• slowly
• sluggishly
• tardily

Adjective

• crawling
• creeping
• dallying
• dawdling
• dilatory
• dillydallying
• dragging
• laggard
• lagging
• languid
• poking
• poky
• pokey
• slow
• sluggish
• snail-paced
• snaillike
• tardy
• unhurried

Examples of leisurely in a Sentence

Adverb

the old hound dog leisurely sauntered over to his water bowl to take a drink

Adjective

They strolled along at a leisurely pace.

proceeding in a leisurely fashion

After a leisurely lunch, we went to see a movie.

Recent Examples on the Web

Adverb

The industrious types flexed their fingertips on their laptops or their smartphones, while the more leisurely set enjoyed a good read or a conversation with an old friend to go with their lattes and scones. —Sal Pizarro, The Mercury News, 17 Jan. 2025

Actually, with half a day at his disposal, Cole could probably finish it, stop to take a nap, and then leisurely wake up only to find most of us only halfway through. —Patricia Hernandez, Rolling Stone, 10 Jan. 2025

Adjective

Nearby, pedestrians take leisurely strolls along the Wrigley Greenbelt and bike riders zip across the L.A. River trail overhead. —Laura Anaya-Morga, Los Angeles Times, 25 Jan. 2025

For either short trips to the store or long, leisurely road trips the E 450 is made to coddle you. —Kristin Shaw, Forbes, 23 Jan. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

Adverb

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Adjective

1604, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

leisurely

adjective

lei·​sure·​ly

ˈlēzh-ər-lē,

ˈlezh-,

ˈlāzh-

: characterized by leisure : unhurried

a leisurely pace

leisureliness noun

leisurely adverb