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

At the same time, Kamala Harris was languishing as a low-profile sidekick to President Joe Biden. —Chris Megerian, Twin Cities, 4 Nov. 2024

Ten Hag was sacked following United’s 2-1 defeat at West Ham on Sunday, a result that left the team languishing in 14th place in the Premier League with just 11 points from nine games. —Matias Grez, CNN, 1 Nov. 2024

The Paperwork Reduction Act: The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1980 established the Information Collection Budget (ICB), but this too has languished. —Clyde Wayne Crews Jr., Forbes, 22 Oct. 2024

Daniel, alas, was left to languish in the coal pits. —Jack King, Vulture, 20 Oct. 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