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 WhartonExamples of languish in a Sentence
older people, especially, were languishing during the prolonged heat wave
Recent Examples on the Web
Some blame clubs in the country’s top domestic league, Serie A, for filling their lineups with foreign players, while Italian prospects languish on the bench.
—Albert Samaha, New Yorker, 30 May 2026
There’s Haley Stevens, a congresswoman backed by Chuck Schumer and AIPAC who is languishing in third place in the polls.
—Aidan McLaughlin, Vanity Fair, 29 May 2026
Over most of the past 27 years, Dolan has been directly responsible for many bad trades, the hiring of incompetent front office personnel and even the expulsion from Madison Square Garden of fan favorite Charles Oakley, all while the team languished near the bottom of the standings year after year.
—Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 28 May 2026
The old way of doing business resulted in low satisfaction scores across agencies and in security flaws as old infrastructure languished, Edinger said.
—Nick Coltrain, Denver Post, 27 May 2026
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Albert Samaha, New Yorker, 30 May 2026
There’s Haley Stevens, a congresswoman backed by Chuck Schumer and AIPAC who is languishing in third place in the polls.
—Aidan McLaughlin, Vanity Fair, 29 May 2026
Over most of the past 27 years, Dolan has been directly responsible for many bad trades, the hiring of incompetent front office personnel and even the expulsion from Madison Square Garden of fan favorite Charles Oakley, all while the team languished near the bottom of the standings year after year.
—Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 28 May 2026
The old way of doing business resulted in low satisfaction scores across agencies and in security flaws as old infrastructure languished, Edinger said.
—Nick Coltrain, Denver Post, 27 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for languish
Cite this Entry
“Languish.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/languish. Accessed 4 Jun. 2026.
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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