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 of languish

• fade
• weaken
• go
• sag
• fail
• sink
• wither

Examples of languish in a Sentence

older people, especially, were languishing during the prolonged heat wave

Recent Examples on the Web

In 2015, in response to a lawsuit that claimed mentally ill people were languishing in county jails for weeks and months, a federal court mandated Washington state provide competency evaluations and restoration services within two weeks. — Andrew Graham, Sacbee.com, 23 July 2026

Trump’s approval rating on the American economy has been languishing, and the latest import taxes could push those ratings further down. — Chad De Guzman, Time, 21 July 2026

Former attorneys in the division worry that other preexisting cases are languishing. — Ben Wieder, Los Angeles Times, 19 July 2026

As its stock languishes below its IPO price — at press time, $131 — short sellers are going all in against the company, hoping to make a killing off of CEO Elon Musk’s faltering pull on investors. — Frank Landymore, Futurism, 16 July 2026

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

Rhymes for languish

• anguish

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