Definition of 'inert'
1. adjective
Someone or something that is inert does not move at all.
2. adjective
If you describe something as inert, you are criticizing it because it is not very lively or interesting.
[disapproval]
3. adjective
Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner’s Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
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Word Frequency
inert in British English
adjective
Collins English Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
Derived forms
inertly (inˈertly) adverb
inertness (inˈertness)
noun
Word origin
C17: from Latin iners unskilled, from in-1 + ars skill; see art1Word Frequency
inert in American English
adjective
1.
having inertia; without power to move, act, or resist
3.
having or exhibiting little or no activity, esp. chemical activity
inert matter in a fertilizer, an inert gas
Webster’s New World College Dictionary, 4th Edition. Copyright © 2010 by
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. All rights reserved.
Derived forms
inertly (inˈertly)
adverb
inertness (inˈertness)
noun
Word Frequency
inert in American English
(ɪnˈɜːrt, ɪˈnɜːrt)
adjective
SYNONYMS 1. immobile, unmoving, lifeless, motionless. 4. See inactive.2. Chemistry
Most material © 2005, 1997, 1991 by Penguin Random House LLC. Modified entries © 2019
by Penguin Random House LLC and HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
Derived forms
inertly adverb
inertness
noun
Word origin
[1640–50; ‹ L inert- (s. of iners) unskillful, equiv. to in- in-3 + -ert-, comb. form of art- (s. of ars) skill; see art1]Examples of 'inert' in a sentence
inert
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In other languages
inert
British English: inert
ADJECTIVE /ɪnˈɜːt/
Someone or something that is inert does not move at all.
He covered the inert body with a blanket.
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Definition of inert from the Collins English Dictionary
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