languish

[ lang-gwish ]

/ ˈlæŋ gwɪʃ /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR languish ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used without object)

to be or become weak or feeble; droop; fade.

to lose vigor and vitality.

to undergo neglect or experience prolonged inactivity; suffer hardship and distress: to languish in prison for ten years.

to be subjected to delay or disregard; be ignored: a petition that languished on the warden's desk for a year.

to pine with desire or longing.

to assume an expression of tender, sentimental melancholy.

noun

the act or state of languishing.

a tender, melancholy look or expression.

Nearby words

languedoc, languedoc-roussillon, languet, languette, languid, languish, languishing, languishment, languor, languorous, langur

Origin of languish

1250–1300; Middle English < Middle French languiss-, long stem of languir ≪ Latin languēre to languish; akin to laxus lax; see -ish²

Related forms

lan·guish·er, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for languish

Common sense, uncontroversial ideas tend to languish when attention has moved elsewhere.
Dear GOP: Fix the Damn Justice System!|Jonathan Alter|December 7, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Some of the authors most revered by their contemporaries now languish in relative obscurity.
The Birth of the Novel|Nick Romeo|November 27, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Critical journalists continue to languish in prison and inside the courtrooms the breadth of the clampdown is on full display.
Egypt Prepares to Anoint a Dictator and Call it an Election|Jesse Rosenfeld|May 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
They see people just like them being elevated quickly to power while they languish, and they become envious.
What’s At Stake In The Tocqueville/Piketty Debate|James Poulos|April 27, 2014|DAILY BEAST

They will be abandoned to languish and rot in “gulags” in Russia.
Russia’s Adoption Ban Is Cruel and Vindictive to All|Dr. Jane Aronson|December 29, 2012|DAILY BEAST
But many of our men are weary and worn, and languish for repose.
A Rebel War Clerk's Diary at the Confederate States Capital|John Beauchamp Jones
When taken to warm climates, they languish, and soon die of disease of the liver.
The Plant Hunters|Mayne Reid
Unless the latter function is provided for, the aerial portions of the plant will languish from want of food to assimilate.
A Treatise on Meteorological Instruments|Henry Negretti
No, Plautus did not allow his public to languish for want of noise.
The Dramatic Values in Plautus|Wilton Wallace Blancke
Hubert must not be permitted to languish a day longer in prison than we can help.
The Cruise of the Nonsuch Buccaneer|Harry Collingwood

British Dictionary definitions for languish

languish

/ (ˈlæŋɡwɪʃ) /

verb (intr)

to lose or diminish in strength or energy

(often foll by for) to be listless with desire; pine

to suffer deprivation, hardship, or neglectto languish in prison

to put on a tender, nostalgic, or melancholic expression

Derived Forms

languishing, adjectivelanguishingly, adverblanguishment, noun

Word Origin for languish

C14 languishen, from Old French languiss-, stem of languir, ultimately from Latin languēre

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

languish

verb (used without object)

noun

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Origin of languish

Related forms

Examples from the Web for languish

British Dictionary definitions for languish

languish

verb (intr)

Derived Forms

Word Origin for languish