Is there a word for feeling lazy?

Question

I want to know if there is a word in English with a similar meaning to "lazy". I don't want it to sound like that person is always lazy. For example, I can say:

I wanted to X, but I was too lazy to [do] Y (which is required for X) at this moment

It is possible that person is lazy, but maybe he just had too many things to do that day, or maybe he was tired, etc. In my opinion, "lazy" can have pejorative meaning, and I don't want that. In my language, you can just say

I should do the dishes, but [word I want] (me) right now.

Answer 1

"Lazy" is the word to use. You can use "lazy" in different ways, one way is to describe the characteristics of a person

He is lazy and he never does the dishes.

But you can also use it to mean "I'm acting lazy now". Context would imply that:

I'm too lazy to do the dishes, right now, I'll do them tomorrow morning.

is this meaning. The context suggests that the person is being "self-deprecating" and a little ironic. The speaker isn't saying that they are always lazy.

It is possible that you mean "tired", which is possible, or perhaps "sleepy", "weary", or "lackadaisical"

Answer 2

Lethargic feels like a good fit to me.

"affected by lethargy; sluggish and apathetic"

Feeling slow, no get up and go, lost your mojo. Not necessarily lazy nor actually tired, just insufficiently bothered to get on with the task.

Answer 3

I would suggest the negative don't feel like.

While gotube's answer may be correct for American English, in British English one would say:

I should do the dishes, but I don't feel like doing them right now.

as pointed out in Peter's coment.

Also note that I would say "do the dishes", not "do dishes" - as already noted in Nigel's comment. Without the "the" it just sounds totally wrong, at least in British English¹.

Another example, with an optional just for emphasis:

I wanted to do X, but I [just] didn't feel like it.

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At the risk of going off-topic, but it is worth mentioning that (obviously), the positive feel like can be used for the opposite situation where one is eager to do something, or eat a particular dish:

I feel like doing the dishes

I feel like playing Pacman

I feel like eating/having some fish and chips

Note that the "eating" (or "having") can be, and often is, omitted - like so:

I feel like some fish and chips

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¹ The OP's original edit omitted the "the" - this has now been corrected.

Answer 4

You could say

I should do dishes, but I can't be bothered right now

This is quite a neutral way of saying it. It's a slightly "older" way to say it than "I'm not feeling it."

Answer 5

I should do dishes, but I'm (just) not feeling it right now.

This is an informal expression that means that now doesn't feel like the right time for something, in a vague way. It describes not a lack of motivation or conscientiousness, but a self-awareness and respect for your own feelings about certain actions. It's not a pejorative.

Answer 6

I'm really surprised at all the other answers here, trying to avoid "lazy" entirely.

People very often say exactly what you said: "I am feeling lazy", meaning exactly what you proposed. If I say "I am feeling lazy, I don't want to do dishes", that does not mean I am inherently lazy! But it does mean that I am currently being lazy, and I am acknowledging it.

This is a completely valid and common thing to say in American English.

Perhaps the source of your laziness is ennui, or lack of motivation ("feeling unmotivated"), or fatigue/lethargy ("feeling tired"), or some other reason. But the actual answer to the question is that "I am feeling lazy" is itself the best way to express this concept.

Answer 7

One option is to say:

I should do dishes, but I don't have the energy right now.

If you say this, then you're saying that you're too tired, or you have been very busy, or something like that.

In my opinion, the phrase "don't have the energy" isn't pejorative at all. On the other hand, phrases like "feeling too lazy" and "can't be bothered" sound somewhat negative.

Answer 8

You are feeling lackadaisical

https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/lackadaisical:

lackadaisical /ˌlækəˈdeɪzɪkəl/ adjective [more lackadaisical; most lackadaisical] : feeling or showing a lack of interest or enthusiasm

Answer 9

In the movie The French Dispatch, there is a fictional town named Ennui-sur-Blasé, combining two loan words that are considered part of English, from French:

• Ennui is a feeling of listlessness arising from doing nothing. It is like laziness along with a bit of depression, I would say.

• Blasé, less like lazy, is a state of being unimpressed.

These words are not frequently used in English, but are still a well-established part of the language. Another less common word is:

• langour, a state of tiredness akin to emotional exhaustion.

One might also experience

• torpitude or indolence, either of which is a sense of simply not wanting to do anything.

Most of these would have been called five-dollar words by Mark Twain, meaning we're kind of showing off with language — not always the best thing to do.

To be friendlier to a reader and writer, we could instead use some easier phrases:

• I'm not up for it right now; I haven't got the energy.
• I'm taking it easy; I could do it, but don't want to right now.
• If you want to sound a bit British you could say I'm knackered, tired.
• If you want to sound a bit old-school rustic American, you could say you're plumb tuckered, completely out of energy.

Answer 10

In American English, there are a few ways I might say this in everyday conversation.

If it doesn't interest you or you generally don't want to do it...

I should do X, but I don't feel like it.

If you're lacking energy or motivation...

I should do X, but I'm not feeling up to it.

If you're really tired or not feeling well...

I should do X, but I don't have it in me.

Also, per your example, a few here have said you should say do the dishes vs. do dishes. In American English you could say either. Both of these are perfectly fine:

I worked so late last night, I didn't feel like doing (the) dishes.

Answer 11

One thing that struck me is that somebody who has too many other tings to do already isn't really that lazy, are they? One word to describe that state which is about the opposite of lazy is preoccupied. The word can be taken literally (i.e., one is already occupied with something else) but usually also describes a state of mind: Being mentally absorbed by something else.

That state is typically, as you requested, transient: Once the other things are done there will be time and attention available for the new task.