Definition
Stagnant water is water that stopped moving — the Latin stagnum means 'standing pool' — and the word never forgot what happens next: stillness turns to murk, murk to rot. That judgment travels with every figurative use. A stagnant economy is not a resting economy; stagnant wages are not stable wages; a stagnant career is not a settled one. The word describes motion's absence going bad — the same water that sparkles when it runs grows foul when it stands.
Examples
- Mosquitoes breed in pools of stagnant water left after the floods.
- Wages have remained stagnant for a decade while living costs have soared.
- He left the firm because his career there had become stagnant.
Collocations
stagnant water·a stagnant economy·remain stagnant·stagnant growth·stagnant wages
Synonyms
still·sluggish·static·inert·stalled
Antonyms
flowing·dynamic·thriving
Word family
stagnate (verb)·stagnation (noun)
In TOEFL & IELTS
An IELTS economics staple: 'wages remained stagnant' is the precise way to describe a flat line in Task 1, and 'economic stagnation' anchors Task 2 essays. TOEFL biology passages use the literal sense — stagnant water as a disease habitat. Learn the trio together: stagnant (adjective), stagnate (verb), stagnation (noun); 'remain stagnant' is the collocation examiners reward.