prolonged
Americanadjective
-
lasting a long time; lengthy.
Regular or prolonged absence from school without a valid reason may result in the absentee being barred from examinations.
-
lengthened or extended in time or space.
Technological innovations in the ICU have led to artificially prolonged life, with associated costs.
Abnormally shortened or prolonged telomeres are a hallmark of cancer.
verb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of prolonged
Explanation
Something prolonged is long and drawn-out — it's taking longer than it should. A prolonged wait is usually annoying. If a fan throws a drink on the court during a basketball game and it takes an hour to clean it up, and then another hour to re-wax the floor, and then another hour for the players to warm up again...that's a prolonged delay. Anything prolonged has been stretched out further than it should be. America's war with Vietnam was prolonged much longer than anyone expected. If something is tedious, time-consuming, and feels like it's taking forever, it's prolonged.
Vocabulary lists containing prolonged
The Call of the Wild
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Boy: Tales of Childhood
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Britain's Finest Hour Speech - Winston Churchill (1940)
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The warning came after recent storms disrupted sea and air connections, and questions over how prepared the island is for more prolonged supply problems.
From BBC ● Nov. 10, 2026
A prolonged slump and price wars in China’s auto market have created challenges for Europe’s auto industry.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 9, 2026
Australia's central bank raised its key interest rate to an 18-year high of 4.85 percent on Tuesday, citing the prolonged war in the Middle East and persistent inflationary pressures.
From Barron's ● Nov. 5, 2026
A prolonged war in Iran is the market’s “black swan,” according to Alicia Levine, head of investment strategy at BNY’s wealth management business.
From MarketWatch ● Nov. 5, 2026
Innumerable such technologies were either not adopted at all or adopted only after prolonged resistance.
From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
