: lagging or tending to lag : slow especially compared to others of the same kind
a laggard pace
… we arrived in Northville, to find … the celebrated ducks playing host to a laggard flock of dark-brown Canada geese.—
The New Yorker
The New YorkerWith sugar prices weak, the stock has been laggard.—Richard B. Hoey
Richard B. Hoey
laggardly
adverb or adjective
laggardness
noun
plural laggards
: someone or something that lags or lingers : someone or something that is slow especially compared to others of the same kind
A few laggards slowed down the pace of the hike.
The company has been accused of being a laggard in adopting new technology.
They [brown bears] usually catch salmon by chasing them through shallow water and pouncing on the laggards.—National Wildlife
National WildlifeSynonyms
Examples of laggard in a Sentence
Adjective
I hate being stuck behind laggard motorists on the freeway.
Noun
The company has been a laggard in developing new products.
tried to spur on the laggards at the back of the line during the hike
Recent Examples on the Web
Julian Zelizer, CNN, 30 Sep. 2022
Its laggard incubation period gives us a full 21 days to intervene between exposure and disease.
—Abdul El-Sayed, The New Republic, 29 Sep. 2022
Benzinga, Detroit Free Press, 2 Nov. 2024
The time to act is now, as the gap between digital leaders and laggards continues to widen.
—Chetan Mathur, Forbes, 18 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for laggard 
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Adjective
Bush’s father, President George H.W. Bush, came under fire in 1992 for his laggard response to Andrew in Florida, a Category 5 hurricane with winds that reached 165 mph, shortly before his reelection contest against Arkansas Governor Bill Clinton.
—Julian Zelizer, CNN, 30 Sep. 2022
Its laggard incubation period gives us a full 21 days to intervene between exposure and disease.
—Abdul El-Sayed, The New Republic, 29 Sep. 2022
Noun
The main laggards were Advanced Micro Devices Inc. and Eli Lilly and Co., each declining around 8%.
—Benzinga, Detroit Free Press, 2 Nov. 2024
The time to act is now, as the gap between digital leaders and laggards continues to widen.
—Chetan Mathur, Forbes, 18 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for laggard
Articles Related to laggard
Dictionary Entries Near laggard
Cite this Entry
“Laggard.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/laggard. Accessed 24 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share