languish
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lan·guish
(lăng′gwĭsh)intr.v. lan·guished, lan·guish·ing, lan·guish·es
1. To be or become weak or feeble; lose strength or vigor: crops languishing from a lack of rain.
2. To exist or continue in miserable or disheartening conditions: languished away in prison.
3. To remain unattended or be neglected: legislation that continued to languish in committee.
4. To become downcast or pine away in longing: languish apart from friends and family; languish for a change from dull routine.
[Middle English languishen, from Old French languir, languiss-, from Latin languēre, to be languid; see slēg- in Indo-European roots.]
lan′guish·er n.
lan′guish·ing·ly adv.
lan′guish·ment n.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
languish
(ˈlæŋɡwɪʃ)vb (intr)
1. to lose or diminish in strength or energy
2. (often foll by for) to be listless with desire; pine
3. to suffer deprivation, hardship, or neglect: to languish in prison.
4. to put on a tender, nostalgic, or melancholic expression
[C14 languishen, from Old French languiss-, stem of languir, ultimately from Latin languēre]
ˈlanguishing adj
ˈlanguishingly adv
ˈlanguishment n
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
lan•guish
(ˈlæŋ gwɪʃ)v.i.
1. to be or become weak or feeble; droop; fade.
2. to lose vigor and vitality.
3. to suffer neglect, distress, or hardship: to languish in prison.
4. to pine with desire or longing.
5. to assume an expression of tender, sentimental melancholy.
n. 6. the act or state of languishing.
7. a tender, melancholy look or expression.
[1250–1300; Middle English < Middle French languiss-, long s. of languir]
lan′guish•er, n.
lan′guish•ing, adj.
lan′guish•ment, n.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
languish
Past participle: languished
Gerund: languishing
| Imperative |
|---|
| languish |
| languish |
Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Switch to new thesaurus
| Verb | 1. | languish - lose vigor, health, or flesh, as through grief; "After her husband died, she just pined away" weaken - become weaker; "The prisoner's resistance weakened after seven days" |
| 2. |  languish - have a desire for something or someone who is not present; "She ached for a cigarette"; "I am pining for my lover"die - languish as with love or desire; "She dying for a cigarette"; "I was dying to leave" | |
| 3. | languish - become feeble; "The prisoner has be languishing for years in the dungeon" degenerate, deteriorate, devolve, drop - grow worse; "Her condition deteriorated"; "Conditions in the slums degenerated"; "The discussion devolved into a shouting match" |
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
languish
verb
1. decline, waste away, fade away, wither away, flag, weaken, wilt, sicken He continues to languish in prison.
decline thrive, flourish, bloom, prosper
decline thrive, flourish, bloom, prosper
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002
languish
verb1. To lose strength or power:
Informal: fizzle (out).
Idioms: go downhill, hit the skids.
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
يَضْعُف، يَفْتُر، يَخْمَل
chřadnoutochabovat
sygne hen
missa òrótt; veslast upp
keipti
nīkuļotvārgt
hâlsiz düşmekzayıf düşmek
languish
[ˈlæŋgwɪʃ] VI1. (= pine) → languidecer, consumirse
2. (in prison) → pudrirse
the results of her research languished for years before action was taken → los resultados de su investigación cayeron en el olvido durante años antes de que se tomaran medidas
they are languishing at the bottom of the second division → están pasando sus horas más bajas en los últimos puestos de la segunda división
the results of her research languished for years before action was taken → los resultados de su investigación cayeron en el olvido durante años antes de que se tomaran medidas
they are languishing at the bottom of the second division → están pasando sus horas más bajas en los últimos puestos de la segunda división
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005
languish
[ˈlæŋgwɪʃ] vi (in prison, hospital, refugee camp) → croupir
to languish in sth
Still in 1959 there were thousands of people languishing in camps in Europe → En 1959, des milliers de personnes croupissaient encore dans des camps en Europe.
Thousands of patients are being left to languish in hospital beds → On laisse des milliers de patients dépérir sur leur lit d'hôpital.
to languish in jail → croupir en prison
He languished in jail for twenty years → Il a passé vingt ans à croupir en prison.
to languish in sth
Still in 1959 there were thousands of people languishing in camps in Europe → En 1959, des milliers de personnes croupissaient encore dans des camps en Europe.
Thousands of patients are being left to languish in hospital beds → On laisse des milliers de patients dépérir sur leur lit d'hôpital.
to languish in jail → croupir en prison
He languished in jail for twenty years → Il a passé vingt ans à croupir en prison.
(= make no progress) [economy, company] → languir; [case] → traîner en longueur
to languish in obscurity (= be unknown) [person] → se morfondre dans l'anonymat
to languish in obscurity (= be unknown) [person] → se morfondre dans l'anonymat
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005
languish
vi → schmachten; (flowers) → dahinwelken; (= pine) → sich sehnen (for nach); he languished in prison for months → er schmachtete monatelang im Gefängnis; the panda merely languished in its new home → der Panda wurde in seiner neuen Heimat immer apathischer or stumpfer; the child languished during his mother’s absence → das Kind verzehrte sich nach seiner Mutter (geh); the products languish on the shelves → die Waren bleiben in den Regalen liegen; I languish without you, he wrote → ich verzehre mich vor Sehnsucht nach dir, schrieb er
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995
languish
(ˈlӕŋgwiʃ) verb to grow weak; to waste away.
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.