Synonyms of lagging

lagging 1 of 2

adjective

as in slow

moving or proceeding at less than the normal, desirable, or required speed

the lagging pace of work on the project was worrisome

Synonyms & Similar Words

• slow
• leisurely
• dragging
• laggard
• creeping
• sluggish
• crawling
• slowing
• dilatory
• tardy
• dillydallying
• poking
• poky
• dallying
• unhurried
• snaillike
• dawdling
• languid
• lethargic
• snail-paced
• lingering
• deliberate
• inactive
• loafing
• inert
• lounging
• loitering
• measured
• plodding
• decelerating
• ambling
• stalling
• shuffling
• procrastinating
• tarrying
• strolling
• heavy-footed
• inching
• slow-footed
• filibustering

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• rapid
• rushing
• running
• lightning
• speedy
• swift
• racing
• hasty
• fast
• speeding
• quick
• breathless
• brisk
• flying
• dizzy
• meteoric
• ready
• fleet
• rocketing
• bolting
• snappy
• whirlwind
• prompt
• expeditious
• accelerated
• hurrying
• breakneck
• whirling
• warp-speed
• barreling
• scudding
• zipping
• scurrying
• scooting
• rushed
• careering
• whisking
• quickened
• hastened
• hurried

lagging

2 of 2

verb

present participle of lag

1

as in fading

to lose bodily strength or vigor

during the fourth quarter the whole team seemed to lag

Synonyms & Similar Words

• fading
• weakening
• sagging
• going
• failing
• sinking
• drooping
• deteriorating
• languishing
• flagging
• decaying
• wilting
• withering
• wasting (away)
• emaciating
• wearing out
• rotting
• yielding
• degenerating
• breaking down
• running down

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• recovering
• rallying
• gaining
• recuperating
• rebounding
• convalescing

2

as in delaying

to move or act slowly

the tired puppy was lagging behind the rest of the pack

Synonyms & Similar Words

• delaying
• lingering
• dragging
• crawling
• poking
• creeping
• playing
• strolling
• stalling
• dawdling
• loitering
• shuffling
• falling behind
• hanging fire
• moping
• lollygagging
• dropping behind
• diddling
• marking time
• idling
• tarrying
• dillydallying
• staggering
• dallying
• lounging
• taking one's time
• dragging one's feet
• shilly-shallying
• loafing
• decelerating
• trifling
• fiddling (around)
• fooling around
• hanging (around or out)
• inching
• puttering (around)
• sauntering
• pottering (around)
• messing around
• ambling
• monkeying (around)
• procrastinating
• plodding
• slowing (down or up)
• lolling
• easing
• lumbering
• temporizing
• filibustering

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• running
• rushing
• tearing
• hurrying
• flying
• racing
• speeding
• ripping
• hastening
• whirling
• whizzing
• bolting
• scurrying
• dashing
• barreling
• rocketing
• coursing
• scooting
• zipping
• scudding
• scrambling
• whisking
• running
• careering
• hustling
• hurtling
• darting
• humping
• bowling
• stampeding
• accelerating
• galloping
• breezing
• trotting
• sprinting
• jogging
• quickening
• speeding (up)
• hotfooting (it)
• outpacing
• overtaking
• outstripping
• outrunning
• catching up
• fast-forwarding

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of lagging

Adjective

Every initiative should identify its operational leading indicator, financial lagging indicator, value owner and realization mechanism. — Todd Bernson, Forbes.com, 6 Aug. 2026

Just last month, Microsoft began layoffs of 20% of its Xbox employees as part of a sweeping reorganization to revive the company’s lagging games division. — Cerys Davies, Los Angeles Times, 5 Aug. 2026

The United States typically experiences the lagging edge of Latin American displacement waves. — Newsweek Staff, MSNBC Newsweek, 14 Nov. 2025

So while America is most likely still a highly desirable place for all kinds of investors, from the average person putting money into a 401(k) to a professional trader, the lagging performance this year is more than your typical year. — Christian Orozco, NBC news, 12 Nov. 2025

Layer on infrastructure costs, amortization, new storage mandates, refinery retrofits for changing crude blends and the lagging effects of the LCFS credit. — Michael Mische, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 Sep. 2025

Reporting is inconsistent and lagging. — Miami Herald, 1 July 2025

Verb

Gilbert Villegas pointed out in a recent Chicago Tribune op-ed, Illinois is lagging badly behind other states in permits issued for new housing construction. — The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 2 Oct. 2026

Executive teams end up relying on lagging indicators like monthly safety logs, turnover metrics and workers’ comp claims that arrive weeks after the unsafe conditions occurred. — Allan Malcolm, Forbes.com, 1 Oct. 2026

For all the Democrats' confidence, the party's brand remains deeply unpopular and fundraising is lagging. — ABC News, 30 Sep. 2026

By comparison, the five-year change for the NFL is 166%, followed by the NBA at 122% and MLB lagging at 44%. — Kurt Badenhausen, Sportico.com, 29 Sep. 2026

So far this year, 59% of all of the 2026 offerings are selling at or above the IPO price although, notably, SpaceX, SK Hynix and Cerebras are all lagging. — Tobias Burns, CNBC, 29 Sep. 2026

Amid lagging sales, retailers marked down the figurines, alienating collectors who want to see items appreciate in value. — Los Angeles Times, 26 Sep. 2026

Target, which is starting to get some traction in its turnaround, but is still lagging Walmart, is making style a pillar of its new approach. — Evan Clark, Footwear News, 24 Sep. 2026

The process has been slowed by lagging voter and political-party registrations, revised and extended deadlines and, now, another pending change to the country’s electoral law — developments that the international community is watching closely. — Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 19 Sep. 2026