Meaning & use

lax

adjective·Academic

Not strict, careful, or thorough enough, especially regarding rules, standards, or discipline.

See it in a sentence

The school's lax attendance policy allowed students to skip class freely.

Investigators blamed the accident on lax safety inspections at the factory.

A note on using this word

Lax is often paired with words like 'security,' 'discipline,' or 'standards' and carries a mildly critical tone.

Words with a similar meaning

Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.

Words with an opposite meaning

strictrigorous

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