as in faded
to lose bodily strength or vigor
older people, especially, were languishing during the prolonged heat wave
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Recent Examples of languished
While lawyers for the state agency that oversees the medical board collected records from the hospital under subpoena, including medical reviews that criticized Weiner’s care, that inquiry languished at the staff level, according to one current and one former board member.
—
J. David McSwane, ProPublica, 21 Mar. 2025
What if the backups languished on private hard drives?
—Julian Lucas, The New Yorker, 14 Mar. 2025
As the years rolled by, the project languished.
—Dan Walters, The Mercury News, 10 Mar. 2025
Recent bills that would make daylight saving time the national year-round standard have languished in committee after being introduced in January.
—Anthony Robledo, USA TODAY, 7 Mar. 2025
Millennial finances languished for years.
—Daniel De Visé, USA TODAY, 4 Mar. 2025
Police were first alerted to the accusations against Shores in 2011, but the case apparently languished for more than three years, until October 2016, after The Star reported on the Crimes Against Children unit’s failures.
—Ian Cummings, Kansas City Star, 25 Feb. 2025
Many films have languished in undue obscurity because of obtuse reviews when they were first screened.
—Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 20 Feb. 2025
Sierra uprising For decades, Sierra College languished in the shadows of larger, more prominent junior college athletic programs in the greater Sacramento region, including American River College and Sacramento City College.
—Joe Davidson, Sacramento Bee, 14 Feb. 2025
J. David McSwane, ProPublica, 21 Mar. 2025
What if the backups languished on private hard drives?
—Julian Lucas, The New Yorker, 14 Mar. 2025
As the years rolled by, the project languished.
—Dan Walters, The Mercury News, 10 Mar. 2025
Recent bills that would make daylight saving time the national year-round standard have languished in committee after being introduced in January.
—Anthony Robledo, USA TODAY, 7 Mar. 2025
Millennial finances languished for years.
—Daniel De Visé, USA TODAY, 4 Mar. 2025
Police were first alerted to the accusations against Shores in 2011, but the case apparently languished for more than three years, until October 2016, after The Star reported on the Crimes Against Children unit’s failures.
—Ian Cummings, Kansas City Star, 25 Feb. 2025
Many films have languished in undue obscurity because of obtuse reviews when they were first screened.
—Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 20 Feb. 2025
Sierra uprising For decades, Sierra College languished in the shadows of larger, more prominent junior college athletic programs in the greater Sacramento region, including American River College and Sacramento City College.
—Joe Davidson, Sacramento Bee, 14 Feb. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for languished
Verb
-
Those at high-risk for listeria infection are newborns, those who are pregnant, have weakened immune systems, and those aged 65 or older.—
Mike Snider,
USA TODAY,
3 Jan. 2025
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But the militants, while greatly weakened, have repeatedly regrouped, often after Israeli forces withdraw from areas.—
Wafaa Shurafa,
Los Angeles Times,
3 Jan. 2025
Verb
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Netflix's livestreams haven't always been smooth sailing The streaming giant has had its fair share of livestreaming experiences that went well, including the live roast of legendary NFL quarterback Tom Brady.—
Kaycee Sloan,
The Enquirer,
24 Dec. 2024
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Bluey has been beloved family viewing since 2018, but the Australian animation went stratospheric this year.—
Jake Kanter,
Deadline,
24 Dec. 2024
Verb
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But the Dodgers — as has so often been the case over the last couple of weeks — failed to tack on.—
Jack Harris,
Los Angeles Times,
14 Apr. 2025
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González’s defeat marks the third consecutive time that the party of Rafael Correa, the country’s most influential president this century, failed to return to the presidency.—
Gonzalo Solano and Regina Garcia Cano,
Los Angeles Times,
14 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Languished.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/languished. Accessed 23 Jul. 2025.
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