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Glite Dictionary
to burn time

to burn time

7.5
To pass time by doing something not useful while you wait
  • phrasal verb
  • Informal
translation icon : perder el tiempo
  • She often burns time by scrolling through social media while waiting for her friends.

You realize that breaking down camera equipment and, and shipping it around, you're burning time.

Examples

  • He managed to burn time during the delay by reading a book at the bus station.

  • While waiting for the movie to start, we decided to burn time at the nearby café.

  • We're burning time.

    Green Room (2016)

Synonyms

to do nothing
vsto burn time
888 1.5

Spend time without any activity

is similar but usually implies filling a waiting period, not total inactivity
to waste time
vsto burn time
728 1.6

To spend time doing things that are not useful instead of doing something more useful

is narrower, often describing idly filling waiting periods not broad unproductive use
to sit around
vsto burn time
  • Informal
350 1.1

To spend time sitting and doing very little without a clear purpose

is commonly used when idling to pass a waiting period rather than relaxed leisure
to wait around
vsto burn time
  • Informal
71 2.5

To spend time doing nothing while waiting for someone or something

is about idling to fill periods spent until something happens rather than leisure
to lie around
vsto burn time
  • Informal
43 3.7

To spend time doing nothing useful

emphasizes longer inactivity rather than brief idling to pass waiting moments
to loaf
vsto burn time
7 6.2

To spend time doing little or nothing instead of working

focuses on laziness generally while the main term stresses filling waiting periods
to laze
vsto burn time
7 4.3

To spend time relaxing and doing very little

has a gentler sense of relaxation compared with idling to fill a wait period
to lounge around
vsto burn time
  • Informal
5 3.8

To relax and do very little

is used for relaxed leisure rather than mainly to fill brief waiting times
to mark time
vsto burn time
  • Informal
3 6.3

Spend time waiting without making progress, doing unproductive things

is used to idle and fill short periods waiting for something to happen
to bum around
vsto burn time
  • Informal
3 7.9

Spend time doing very little or nothing

carries the same idle idea but lacks the waiting purpose emphasis
to bum about
vsto burn time
  • UK
2 8.6

To spend time doing very little and moving around without plans

is used to fill waiting periods more often than aimless wandering
to lounge about
vsto burn time
  • UK
1 3.4

To spend time lazily doing little or nothing

is similar but carries a more relaxed, comfortable leisure sense than filling waits
to loll around
vsto burn time
  • Informal
1 4.4

To spend time doing very little and relaxing

focuses on relaxed laziness rather than purposely filling a short waiting interval
to idle
vsto burn time
1 3.2

To spend time doing nothing

focuses on short pauses used to pass waiting time rather than a lasting state
to loaf about
vsto burn time
  • UK
1 6.5

To spend time doing nothing in a lazy way

is used specifically to fill a waiting interval rather than general idleness
to whittle away
vsto burn time
  • Informal
6.8

To pass time slowly in a relaxed way doing pleasant simple things

is used for idly filling waiting periods rather than pleasant leisure only
to piddle away
vsto burn time
  • Informal
8.6

Spend time or money on unimportant things

focuses on idly filling waiting periods not on wasting resources or money
to piddling around
vsto burn time
  • Informal
8.6

To spend time doing small unimportant things with no real plan

is used to idle specifically to fill short waiting periods rather than dawdle
to footle away
vsto burn time
  • UK
9.6

To waste time doing small, unimportant things

is more about idly filling brief waiting moments rather than wasting small efforts
to trifle
vsto burn time
7.1

To spend time idly on unimportant things

is used to fill a waiting period rather than only unimportant occupation
to waste one's time
vsto burn time
3.3

To spend time on things that are not useful

is often used for filling brief waiting periods rather than general unproductive use
to pull your pud
vsto burn time
  • Offensive
9.9

To waste time instead of working

is similar in idleness but is informal and crude in tone
to frig around
vsto burn time
  • Slang
9.9

To waste time instead of doing something useful

shares idle meaning but is more colloquial and blunt in speech

How Unproductive

to waste time
728 1.6
to burn time
  • Informal
7.5
to wait around
  • Informal
71 2.5

Surface Forms

burn time infinitive
burned time past
burned time past participle
burning time present participle
burns time third person singular

Morphology

burn + time

There is a clear metaphorical link: if a learner knows 'burn' as 'consume/exppend' and 'time' as a resource, they can plausibly infer 'burn time' means to use up or waste a period. However, the verb choice is less conventional than alternatives like 'spend', 'waste' or 'kill' time, so the exact idle/unproductive nuance may not be fully predictable without prior exposure.

Etymology

Burn time may come from the simple picture of burning wood or fuel: when you burn something it is used up, so you are using up your time. That's why it means 'to spend time idly or waste time'.