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lagging

1 American  
[lag-ing] / ˈlæg ɪŋ /

noun

  1. the act of falling or staying behind.

adjective

  1. lingering; loitering; slow and dragging.

    lagging steps.
lagging 2 American  
[lag-ing] / ˈlæg ɪŋ /

noun

  1. the act of covering a boiler, oil tank, etc., with heat-insulating material.

  2. the covering formed.

  3. the material used.

  4. a number of boards or the like joined together side by side to line an excavation.

  5. Masonry. a number of lags, taken as a whole.

lagging British  
/ ˈlæɡɪŋ /

noun

  1. insulating material wrapped around pipes, boilers, etc, or laid in a roof loft, to prevent loss of heat

  2. the act or process of applying lagging

  3. a wooden frame used to support an arch during construction

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • laggingly adverb

Etymology

Origin of lagging1

First recorded in 1590–1600; lag 1 + -ing 1, -ing 2 ( def. )

Origin of lagging2

First recorded in 1850–55; lag 3 + -ing 1

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.