Definition of "lag" []

• To fail to keep up a pace; straggle. (verb-intransitive)
• To proceed or develop with comparative slowness: The electric current lags behind the voltage. (verb-intransitive)
• To fail, weaken, or slacken gradually; flag. (verb-intransitive)
• Games To determine the order of play in billiards by successively hitting the cue ball against the end rail, the ball rebounding closest to the head rail indicating the player to shoot first. (verb-intransitive)
• To cause to hang back or fall behind. (verb-transitive)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "You want to let it lag along, and _lag_ along, and see 'f something won't happen to get you out of it!"
• "Ironically, the only main economic indicator that has continued to lag is unemployment."
• "The built-in lag in adjusting home assessments has become a government policymakers dream: It is a counter-cyclical tax that can generate more revenue in bad times, raising collections at a time when other economically sensitive taxes falter."