Michael Owen continued his return to goalscoring form as Liverpool won their first home league game since November.
El-Hadji Diouf opened the scoring from Owen's cross before the England striker collected his fourth goal in as many games.
Poor Bolton, who had been industrious and more than a little unlucky with some positive play, ended up being sucked a little closer to the relegation zone.
Still ahead of West Ham on goal difference, they wasted a precious game in hand to put some daylight between themselves and the bottom three.
Liverpool have closed to within three points of fourth-placed neighbours Everton as they continued their late bid to get back into Champions League contention.
Furthermore, Gerard Houllier's men go into Thursday's UEFA Cup quarter-final against Celtic with Owen back to his best.
Bolton competed well for almost all the first half before falling behind to Diouf's header which the visitors insisted was offside.
Liverpool needed the good fortune. Their Worthington Cup final victory over Manchester United should have filled them with confidence, but certainly in the first half they looked lethargic and sluggish.
It was a messy, unimpressive opening with Liverpool leaving Owen up front on his own and Bolton using Salva Ballesta in that role with Ricardo Gardner and Bernard Mendy behind the Spanish striker.
Bolton wasted a good free-kick when Simon Charlton hammered his effort wide, and then the defender was injured when Djimi Traore slammed into him and won the ball on the edge of the box.
Liverpool's attacks broke down around Diouf on the right. The Senegalese star failed to play Jamie Carragher down the line properly, and then ignored Steven Gerrard in the same position and ran into a posse of Bolton defenders.
Youri Djorkaeff kept popping up in dangerous positions on either wing. Twice he received the ball in yards of space and Liverpool needed to be aware of the threat he was posing.
Gardner had a shot blocked and Mendy got past John Arne Riise and saw his low cross hacked away by Traore, as much of the game was still being played in Liverpool's half.
Only a fine last-ditch tackle by Traore on Charlton in the box averted danger - then after 19 minutes one clumsy tackle too many from Ivan Campo, on Danny Murphy, earned the Bolton man a booking.
The Trotters continued to take the game to Liverpool and after 23 minutes Mendy got in on the right to force Jerzy Dudek into a save.
Jussi Jaaskelainen was finally brought into the action after Murphy had robbed Ricardo Gardner before feeding Diouf, who tried to chip the Finnish keeper from 20 yards without success.
Jay-Jay Okocha robbed Dietmar Hamann and raced from the half-way line to drill a low shot which Dudek spilled, but managed to reclaim before a Bolton foot could get near it.
Owen was then gifted the ball from a poor Florent Laville header. The England striker tried to take the ball round Jaaskelainen, but was foiled and Vladimir Smicer saw his follow-up shot blocked by Mendy.
After 41 minutes, Salva was booked for diving on the edge of the box after a Sami Hyypia challenge.
Then, with a minute to go before the break, Diouf headed home Owen's cross, amid fury from Bolton players who claimed the striker was offside.
Bolton's response after the break was a hopeful Djorkaeff hook from 30 yards that flew over and a more dangerous whipped-in cross from Okocha which forced
Dudek to make an important save.
Then on 52 minutes Djorkaeff found room on the right to lay a cross back to the edge of the box, from where Campo side-footed wildly over when unmarked.
Liverpool wasted a break-out when Gerrard and then Diouf failed to find an unmarked Owen.
The England hitman then scampered past three men before finally losing control on the edge of the box.
Liverpool brought on Bruno Cheyrou for Smicer on 57 minutes, and in the 60th minute Pierre-Yves Andre came on for Mendy, with Bolton still lively and worrying a Liverpool side that could not hit levels of their Worthington Cup exploits.
Traore again came to his side's rescue on 63 minutes when he robbed Campo in the box after Djorkaeff had set up the Spaniard.
Liverpool broke again after 66 minutes when Hamann sent Owen away on the left, but his ball inside was lashed just wide by Gerrard from 20 yards.
The second goal came a minute later when Diouf took advantage of Charlton's stumble in the box to claim the ball, get to the line and lay a cross into Owen's path for the striker to score his 20th goal of the season from a couple of yards.
It was over from that point; Bolton visibly sagged as a regimented Liverpool played out the game.
Teams
Liverpool: Dudek, Carragher, Traore, Hyypia, Riise,
Gerrard (Diao 72), Hamann, Murphy, Diouf, Owen,
Smicer (Cheyrou 57).
Subs Not Used: Arphexad, Baros, Biscan.
Goals: Diouf 44, Owen 67.
Bolton: Jaaskelainen, N'Gotty, Bergsson, Laville, Charlton,
Mendy (Andre 61), Campo, Okocha, Gardner, Salva (Nolan 70),
Djorkaeff.
Subs Not Used: Frandsen, Barness, Poole.
Booked: Campo, Salva, Laville.
Att: 41,462
Ref: G Barber (Hertfordshire).
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