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'atsel (עצל) means lazy in Hebrew.

It is an adjective, and the Hebrew dictionary's own definitions are below.

עָצֵל
'atsel
adjective
In English

lazy

The stress falls on the part in bold.

The Hebrew dictionaryWords starting with ע

The dictionary gives one meaning for 'atsel.

The definitions are in Hebrew, as the dictionary writes them.

  1. 1
    שנמנע מכל עבודה ומעדיף לנוח במקום זאת.
    עַד־מָתַי עָצֵל תִּשְׁכָּב; מָתַי תָּקוּם מִשְּׁנָתֶךָ?

The verses are quoted from the Hebrew Bible, with the word in bold.

The word 'atsel is an adjective.

Written with vowel points
עָצֵל
Written without vowel points
עצל
Said
'atsel
Root
ע־צ־ל
Pattern
קָטֵל
Plural
עֲצֵלִים
Feminine form
עֲצֵלָה
Inflections
נ' עֲצֵלָה, ר' עֲצֵלִים, נ"ר עֲצֵלוֹת
Gematria
190

This is how 'atsel is said in other languages.

English
lazy

These words mean nearly the same as 'atsel.

A word with a dashed border has no page of its own in this dictionary yet.

These words mean the opposite of 'atsel.

A word with a dashed border has no page of its own in this dictionary yet.

These words rhyme with 'atsel.

The word 'atsel is part of these phrases and sayings.

  • עין עצלה
  • לך אל נמלה עצל ראה דרכיה וחכם

A word with a dashed border has no page of its own in this dictionary yet.

The word 'atsel comes from the root ע־צ־ל, like these words.

These words come before and after 'atsel in the dictionary.

These are the questions people ask about the word 'atsel.

What does 'atsel (⁨עצל⁩) mean in Hebrew?

'atsel (⁨עצל⁩) means lazy. It is said 'atsel, with the stress on tsel.

What is a synonym for 'atsel (⁨עצל⁩)?

Words that mean nearly the same as 'atsel (⁨עצל⁩) are ⁨עצלן⁩, ⁨בטלן⁩, and ⁨נחשל⁩.

What is the opposite of 'atsel (⁨עצל⁩)?

Words that mean the opposite of 'atsel (⁨עצל⁩) are ⁨זריז⁩, ⁨חרוץ⁩, and ⁨פעיל⁩.

What rhymes with 'atsel (⁨עצל⁩)?

Words that rhyme with 'atsel (⁨עצל⁩) include ⁨נוזל⁩, ⁨ישראל⁩, ⁨של⁩, ⁨אל⁩, ⁨נמל⁩, and ⁨ברזל⁩.

The definitions, pronunciation, synonyms and translations on this page are adapted from the entry עצל of the Hebrew Wiktionary, read on 1 November 2026, and are shared under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.

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