languish

CEFRC2

/ˈlæŋ.ɡwɪʃ/

verb

Türkçe translations

Translating…

In plain English

  1. 01

    verb

    To remain in a bad or weak condition for a long time.

  2. 02

    verb

    Extra detail

    To live in miserable or disheartening conditions.

Examples

  • Now that I've lost him, all I can do is languish.

  • The plants began to languish without water.

At a glance

Sits at C2 on the CEFR scale

Senses
5
Parts of speech
1
Citations
4
Synonyms
1

Also pronounced

  • /ˈleɪ̯ŋ.ɡwɪʃ/

Deep Dive

verb

Extra meanings

  1. To pine away in longing for something; to have low spirits, especially from lovesickness.

  2. To lose or lack vitality; to grow weak or feeble.

  3. To lose strength and become weak; to be in a state of weakness or sickness.

More examples

In context

  • He languished in prison for years.

  • The case languished for years before coming to trial.

  • He languished without his girlfriend.

Synonyms

Quick test

Two questions on this entry. Nothing is scored.

Question 1 · Quick check

Without proper sunlight and water, the plant will blank and eventually die.

Practise this properly in the app, where the word comes back before you forget it.

Nearby

Origin

verb

From Middle English languysshen, from the present participle stem of Anglo-Norman and Middle French languir, from Late Latin languīre, alteration of Latin languēre (“to be faint, unwell”). : Compare languor, languid and lax. : Cognate with slack.