languish
verb
lan·guish
ˈlaŋ-gwish 
languished; languishing; languishes
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
Edith WhartonSynonyms
Examples of languish in a Sentence
older people, especially, were languishing during the prolonged heat wave
Recent Examples on the Web
Items that are appropriate for households with higher incomes can continue to boom while other types of products languish and have to be sold off-price.
—Richard Kestenbaum, Forbes, 10 Oct. 2024
The song languished in the Sony/ATV vault for years until July 2023 when Ewing’s demo was issued on numerous platforms.
—Tom Roland, Billboard, 9 Oct. 2024
Then, as if the former president’s wish had come true, the project languished for months without a distributor.
—Matt Brennan, Los Angeles Times, 7 Oct. 2024
Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy, who had been raped as a law student, was outraged by her assistant's discovery: More than 11,000 untested rape kits, which had languished in that warehouse for years.
—Nicole Fallert, USA TODAY, 28 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for languish 
Richard Kestenbaum, Forbes, 10 Oct. 2024
The song languished in the Sony/ATV vault for years until July 2023 when Ewing’s demo was issued on numerous platforms.
—Tom Roland, Billboard, 9 Oct. 2024
Then, as if the former president’s wish had come true, the project languished for months without a distributor.
—Matt Brennan, Los Angeles Times, 7 Oct. 2024
Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy, who had been raped as a law student, was outraged by her assistant's discovery: More than 11,000 untested rape kits, which had languished in that warehouse for years.
—Nicole Fallert, USA TODAY, 28 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for languish
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'languish.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Languish.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/languish. Accessed 30 Oct. 2024.
Copy CitationKids 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
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