puttered about
Killed time lazily
Puttered about means to occupy oneself in an unhurried, aimless way with small tasks or activities.
The phrase suggests gentle, unfocused activity rather than productive work: He puttered about the garage all afternoon.
British English uses pottered about for the same meaning.
- fussedWorried over trifles
- pottered aroundOccupied time unproductively
- meanderedTraveled without direct course
- roamedTraveled without fixed course
- dawdledMoved slowly, idly
killed time · wandered · tidied · tinker · idled · faffed around · sauntered · rearranged · shuffle · relaxed · took it easy · ambled · moseyed · went nowhere · loitered · strolled · unhurried · whiled away
puttered aboutconcentrated
Gathered or intensified
applied oneself · buckled down · got down to business · zeroed in · toiled
puttered abouttoiled
Exerted oneself strenuously
labored · worked hard · hustled · went all out · scrambled
puttered aboutachieved
Successfully completed a goal
made progress · produced · made headway · powered through · delivered