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languish. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
languish, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
languish in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
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English
Etymology
From Middle English languysshen, from the present participle stem of Anglo-Norman and Middle French languir, from Late Latin languīre, alteration of Latin languēre (“to be faint, unwell”).
- Compare languor and lax.
- Cognate with slack.
Pronunciation
Verb
languish (third-person singular simple present languishes, present participle languishing, simple past and past participle languished)
- (intransitive) To lose strength and become weak; to be in a state of weakness or sickness.
- (intransitive) To pine away in longing for something; to have low spirits, especially from lovesickness.
He languished without his girlfriend.
- (intransitive) To live in miserable or disheartening conditions.
He languished in prison for years.
- (intransitive) To be neglected; to make little progress, be unsuccessful.
The case languished for years before coming to trial.
- (transitive, obsolete) To make weak; to weaken, devastate.
- (intransitive, now rare) To affect a languid air, especially disingenuously.
1815, Jane Austen, Emma:He is an excellent young man, and will suit Harriet exactly: it will be an "exactly so," as he says himself; but he does sigh and languish, and study for compliments rather more than I could endure as a principal.
a. 1833, Alfred, Lord Tennyson, “Eleänore”, in Poems, page 31:His bowstring slackened, languid Love, / Leaning his cheek upon his hand, / Droops both his wings, regarding thee, / And so would languish evermore, / Serene, imperial Eleänore.
Related terms
Translations
to lose strength and become weak
- Albanian: lëngoj (sq)
- Armenian: թառամել (hy) (tʿaṙamel), թուլանալ (hy) (tʿulanal), տկարանալ (hy) (tkaranal), հյուծվել (hy) (hyucvel)
- Bulgarian: отслабвам (bg) (otslabvam), отмалявам (bg) (otmaljavam)
- Catalan: decaure (ca)
- Chinese:
- Mandarin: 憔悴 (zh) (qiáocuì)
- Czech: zeslábnout
- Danish: trættes
- Dutch: verzwakken (nl), verslappen (nl)
- Finnish: riutua (fi), nääntyä (fi)
- French: dépérir (fr), se cachectiser, se rabougrir, devenir étique
- German: ermatten (de), erschlaffen (de), siechen (de)
- Hungarian: gyengül (hu), lankad (hu), bágyad (hu), ernyed (hu), pilled (hu), erőtlenedik (hu), sorvad (hu) (all: prefixed with el- when referring to the result, not the process)
- Ido: langorar (io)
- Italian: intristire, languire (it)
- Japanese: 元気がなくなる (げんきがなくなる, genki ga nakunaru)
- Latin: marcesco
- Macedonian: о́слаби (óslabi)
- Maori: tārure
- Old English: dwīnan
- Persian: رنجور شدن (ranjur šodan)
- Polish: marnieć (pl) impf
- Portuguese: definhar (pt)
- Russian: ча́хнуть (ru) impf (čáxnutʹ), увяда́ть (ru) impf (uvjadátʹ), слабе́ть (ru) impf (slabétʹ)
- Spanish: atrofiar (es), marchitar (es), decaer (es)
- Swedish: försmäkta (sv), tyna bort (sv)
- Turkish: gevşemek (tr)
- Ukrainian: скні́ти impf (skníty)
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to pine away with longing
- Armenian: տանջվել (hy) (tanǰvel), թախծել (hy) (tʿaxcel), ուժից ընկնել (hy) (užicʿ ənknel), ուժասպառ լինել (užaspaṙ linel)
- Bulgarian: чезна (bg) (čezna)
- Catalan: llanguir (ca)
- Dutch: smachten (nl), verlangen (nl)
- Esperanto: velki
- Finnish: riutua (fi), räytyä (fi)
- French: languir (fr), se mourir (fr)
- German: schmachten (de), sehnen (de), sich verzehren
- Greek: μαραζώνω (el) (marazóno)
- Hungarian: eped (hu), epekedik (hu), sóvárog (hu)
- Macedonian: ве́нее (vénee), и́збледи (ízbledi)
- Maori: hiangongo
- Persian: بیحال شدن (bi-hâl šodan), در حسرت سوختن (dar hasrat suxtan)
- Polish: tęsknić (pl) impf
- Russian: тоскова́ть (ru) impf (toskovátʹ), изныва́ть (ru) impf (iznyvátʹ)
- Spanish: languidecer (es)
- Turkish: durgunlaşmak (tr)
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to live in miserable conditions
- Czech: živořit (cs)
- Dutch: kwijnen (nl), wegkwijnen (nl)
- Finnish: kitua (fi), riutua (fi), virua
- French: traîner une misérable éxistence, vivoter (fr)
- German: dahinsiechen (de), schmachten (de)
- Hungarian: senyved (hu), sínylődik (hu)
- Italian: vivachiare
- Japanese: 惨めに暮らす (みじめにくらす, mijime ni kurasu)
- Persian: ذله شدن (zelle šodan)
- Polish: dogorywać (pl) impf, pokutować (pl) impf
- Russian: томи́ться (ru) impf (tomítʹsja), прозяба́ть (ru) impf (prozjabátʹ), влачи́ть жа́лкое существова́ние impf (vlačítʹ žálkoje suščestvovánije)
- Spanish: sufrir (es), desperecer (es), ir tirando, malvivir (es)
- Turkish: sürünmek (tr)
- Ukrainian: скні́ти impf (skníty)
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to be neglected, to make little progress
- Dutch: stagneren (nl)
- Finnish: roikkua (fi)
- French: péricliter (fr), décliner (fr), stagner (fr), piétiner (fr), marquer le pas (fr), patauger (fr)
- Hungarian: (of a living being) tesped (hu), kókadozik (hu), darvadozik (hu), hervadozik (hu), sorvadozik (hu)
- Italian: stagnare (it), segnare il passo
- Persian: سرد شدن (fa) (sard šodan), مغفول ماندن (mağful mândan)
- Polish: wlec się (pl) impf
- Russian: тяну́ться (ru) impf (tjanútʹsja)
- Spanish: periclitar (es), debilitarse (es), estancarse (es), atascarse (es), enredarse (es)
- Ukrainian: скні́ти impf (skníty)
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