The difference between Idle and Inactive

When used as adjectives, idle means empty, vacant, whereas inactive means not active, temporarily or permanently.


Idle is also noun with the meaning: an idle animation.

Idle is also verb with the meaning: to spend in idleness.

check bellow for the other definitions of Idle and Inactive

  1. Idle as an adjective (obsolete):

    Empty, vacant.

  2. Idle as an adjective:

    Not being used appropriately; not occupied; (of time) with no, no important, or not much activity.

    Examples:

    "'idle hours"

    "'[[idle time]] (compare: [[downtime]])"

    "My computer [[hibernate]]s after it has been idle for 30 minutes."

  3. Idle as an adjective:

    Not engaged in any occupation or employment; unemployed; inactive; doing nothing in particular.

    Examples:

    "'idle workmen"

  4. Idle as an adjective:

    Averse to work, labor or employment; lazy; slothful.

    Examples:

    "an idle fellow"

  5. Idle as an adjective:

    Of no importance; useless; worthless; vain; trifling; thoughtless; silly.

    Examples:

    "an idle story;  idle talk;  idle rumor"

  6. Idle as an adjective (obsolete):

    Light-headed; foolish.

    Examples:

    "rfquotek Ford"

  1. Idle as a verb (transitive):

    To spend in idleness; to waste; to consume.

  2. Idle as a verb (intransitive):

    To lose or spend time doing nothing, or without being employed in business.

    Examples:

    "to idle in an [[IRC]] channel"

  3. Idle as a verb (intransitive):

    Of an engine: to run at a slow speed, or out of gear; to tick over.

  1. Idle as a noun (gaming):

    An idle animation.

  2. Idle as a noun (gaming):

    An idle game.

    Examples:

    "synonyms: idle game incremental game"

  1. Inactive as an adjective:

    Not active, temporarily or permanently.

    Examples:

    "The volcano is inactive, but is only dormant."

    "An inactive boy, he rarely exercised and preferred to stay indoors."

  2. Inactive as an adjective:

    Not functioning or operating; broken down

    Examples:

    "The photocopier is inactive pending repair."

  3. Inactive as an adjective:

    Retired from duty or service.

    Examples:

    "Admiral Jones is now on the inactive list."

  4. Inactive as an adjective (chemistry):

    Relatively inert.

    Examples:

    "Aluminium is inactive towards water."

  5. Inactive as an adjective (physics):

    Showing no optical activity in polarized light.

    Examples:

    "Synthetic glycine is optically inactive as it contains equal amounts of the d- and l- form."

Compare words: