languish

verb

lan·​guish ˈlaŋ-gwish 

languished; languishing; languishes

intransitive verb

1

a

: to be or become feeble, weak, or enervated

Plants languish in the drought.

b

: to be or live in a state of depression or decreasing vitality

languished in prison for ten years

2

a

: to become dispirited

b

: to suffer neglect

the bill languished in the Senate for eight months

3

: to assume an expression of grief or emotion appealing for sympathy

languished at him through screwed-up eyes

—Edith Wharton

languisher noun

languishingly

ˈlaŋ-gwi-shiŋ-lē 

adverb

languishment

ˈlaŋ-gwish-mənt 

noun

Synonyms

• decay
• droop
• emaciate
• fade
• fail
• flag
• go
• lag
• sag
• sink
• waste (away)
• weaken
• wilt
• wither

Examples of languish in a Sentence

older people, especially, were languishing during the prolonged heat wave

Recent Examples on the Web

Regardless of what landed them there, many individuals have languished in prison for decades, well beyond the point of rehabilitation and long after the time for filing any appeals has expired. —Olinda Moyd, Baltimore Sun, 4 Jan. 2025

Yes, there is a languishing streaming service and a studio slate that’s a couple hundred million over budget, but this takes precedence! —Mia Galuppo, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Jan. 2025

Katharine spent years languishing as a lady-in-waiting to a lady-in-waiting. —Eva Wolchover, New York Times, 2 Jan. 2025

Manchester United is currently languishing in 14th position and on a run of three successive defeats. —Zak Garner-Purkis, Forbes, 29 Dec. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Anglo-French languiss-, stem of languir, from Vulgar Latin *languire, from Latin languēre

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

languish

verb

lan·​guish ˈlaŋ-gwish 

1

: to become weak or languid : waste away

languish in prison

2

: to suffer neglect

a bill languishing in the Senate

languishment

-mənt 

noun