26984 words

lag

13 definitions • 21 examples
1
to move or make progress so slowly that you are behind other people or things:

Examples:

lag behind He's lagging behind - I think we'd better wait for him to catch us up.
Sales are lagging at the moment.
2
If a computer or computer game lags, there is a delay between the user doing something and the computer or game reacting to it:

Examples:

If I try to access any of the folders or files, the computer lags seriously.
Why are the games on my laptop suddenly lagging when they ran fine before?
3
to cover something with a thick layer of material in order to stop heat from escaping or to stop water from freezing:

Examples:

to lag pipes
4
to send someone to prison or to arrest someone
5
to hit a golf ball gently a long distance across short grass, aiming for it to stop near the hole:

Examples:

lag up to She lagged up to the hole from between 30 and 50 feet.
lag something to something He lagged his putt to within about two feet of the 17th hole.
lag something up to something He only intended to lag the putt up close to the hole.
6
a delay between two things happening:

Examples:

lag between You have to allow for a time lag between order and delivery.
7

Examples:

Gamers know the slightest lag between a mouse's movements and the action on the PC screen can have serious consequences.
You can optimize your internet connection so you can play online games with less lag.
8
a prisoner or a person who has often been a prisoner in the past:

Examples:

old lag He tried to gain the trust of both young offenders and old lags.
9
to move or advance so slowly that you are behind other people or things:

Examples:

John’s always lagging behind the others in the class.
10
a delay in the period of time in which events happen:

Examples:

[ C ] There is often a lag between becoming infected and the first signs of the illness.
11
to not make as much progress as other people or things:

Examples:

lag behind sb/sth Business leaders in the UK still lag behind their European counterparts in foreign language skills.
lag well/far behind As usual we lag far behind the rest of the world in this matter.
They continue to lag their competitors in most areas of the business.
12
to move or make progress more slowly than usual, or to change later than something else changes:

Examples:

Business had improved considerably after lagging last year.
There has been an upturn in business travel, but hotel prices are still lagging.
13
a delay between two things happening:

Examples:

This can mean a lag during construction projects.
Sometimes there would be long lag times between responses.

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