/
ləʊθ/
adj.
reluctant; unwilling:
I was loath to leave.
Usage
Do not confuse loath and loathe. Loath is an adjective meaning ‘reluctant or unwilling’, as in I was loath to leave, whereas loathe is a verb meaning ‘feel hatred or disgust for’, as in she loathed him on sight.
Etymology
OE lāth ‘hostile’, of Gmc origin.