linger

verb

lin·​ger ˈliŋ-gər 

lingered; lingering ˈliŋ-g(ə-)riŋ 

intransitive verb

1

: to be slow in parting or in quitting something : tarry

fans lingered outside the door

2

a

: to remain existent although often waning in strength, importance, or influence

lingering doubts

lingering odors

b

: to remain alive although gradually dying

was seriously ill, but lingered on for several months

3

: to be slow to act : procrastinate

He lingered in settling the estate in order to increase his fees.

4

: to move slowly : saunter

lingering homeward

transitive verb

1

: to pass (a period of time) slowly

2

obsolete : delay

lingerer

ˈliŋ-gər-ər 

noun

lingeringly

ˈliŋ-g(ə-)riŋ-lē 

adverb

Synonyms

• crawl
• creep
• dally
• dawdle
• delay
• diddle
• dillydally
• drag
• lag
• loiter
• lollygag
• lallygag
• mope
• poke
• shilly-shally
• tarry

Examples of linger in a Sentence

The tourists didn't linger very long.

She lingered at the art exhibit.

He lingered in bed and missed breakfast.

They lingered over coffee after dinner.

The heat lingered long after the sun had gone down.

The smell of her perfume lingered.

The idea lingered in their minds.

Recent Examples on the Web

The finish is long and sweet, with lingering notes of vanilla, caramel, spice, and seasoned oak. —Joseph V Micallef, Forbes, 11 Dec. 2024

Fire activity around Pepperdine University’s Malibu campus has decreased, with only small flames remaining as firefighters tackle lingering hot spots, the school alerted at 9:58 p.m. Tuesday. —Hanna Park, Robert Shackelford and Mary Gilbert, CNN, 11 Dec. 2024

His eyes linger a beat too long on the patterned material of my pajama bottoms. —Charlotte Phillipp, People.com, 10 Dec. 2024

By late Tuesday morning, at least a couple negative reviews that did not appear to come from genuine customers lingered online. —Megan Cerullo, CBS News, 10 Dec. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English (northern dialect) lengeren to dwell, frequentative of lengen to prolong, from Old English lengan; akin to Old English lang long

First Known Use

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

Kids Definition

linger

verb

lin·​ger ˈliŋ-gər 

lingered; lingering -g(ə-)riŋ 

1

: to be slow in quitting a place or activity

lingered in bed

2

: to be slow to act

lingerer

-gər-ər 

noun

lingeringly

-g(ə-)riŋ-lē 

adverb