as in fades
to lose bodily strength or vigor
older people, especially, were languishing during the prolonged heat wave
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Recent Examples of languishes
In the second, supply balloons while demand languishes, which could happen if, for example, the AI bubble pops.
—
Big Think, 22 Apr. 2026
No such luck with Imperfect Women, which languishes in the same genre space but is perfectly obvious in comparison, a series that solves its mystery halfway through the season but still keeps going.
—Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 18 Mar. 2026
Manu has found a home, but in the human world her mother languishes in a detention facility and her father, the head of a criminal enterprise, is known among her friends as a rebel who has disappeared and is assumed dead.
—Mary Ann Grossmann, Twin Cities, 15 Feb. 2026
Those that finish from first to eighth in the league phase will automatically go through, and while Barca currently languishes in 15th, a win could take them up into the threshold depending on how other results pan out.
—Tom Sanderson, Forbes.com, 21 Jan. 2026
Ditto for his team’s penalty kill, which languishes in the Eastern Conference basement.
—Julian McKenzie, New York Times, 3 Jan. 2026
That blueprint has since become a template for developers eager to cultivate exclusivity while testing pricing in private and avoiding the public scrutiny of how many days a home languishes on the open market.
—Abby Montanez, Robb Report, 22 Dec. 2025
Scientists are eager to bring Perseverance's haul — the 10 sample tubes dropped onto the crater floor in 2023 — back to laboratories on Earth, but their return remains uncertain as NASA's troubled Mars Sample Return program languishes in limbo.
—Sharmila Kuthunur, Space.com, 19 Dec. 2025
However, more volatility could be in store as bitcoin languishes more than 30% below its record high and nerves linger about the yen carry trade.
—John Towfighi, CNN Money, 1 Dec. 2025
Big Think, 22 Apr. 2026
No such luck with Imperfect Women, which languishes in the same genre space but is perfectly obvious in comparison, a series that solves its mystery halfway through the season but still keeps going.
—Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 18 Mar. 2026
Manu has found a home, but in the human world her mother languishes in a detention facility and her father, the head of a criminal enterprise, is known among her friends as a rebel who has disappeared and is assumed dead.
—Mary Ann Grossmann, Twin Cities, 15 Feb. 2026
Those that finish from first to eighth in the league phase will automatically go through, and while Barca currently languishes in 15th, a win could take them up into the threshold depending on how other results pan out.
—Tom Sanderson, Forbes.com, 21 Jan. 2026
Ditto for his team’s penalty kill, which languishes in the Eastern Conference basement.
—Julian McKenzie, New York Times, 3 Jan. 2026
That blueprint has since become a template for developers eager to cultivate exclusivity while testing pricing in private and avoiding the public scrutiny of how many days a home languishes on the open market.
—Abby Montanez, Robb Report, 22 Dec. 2025
Scientists are eager to bring Perseverance's haul — the 10 sample tubes dropped onto the crater floor in 2023 — back to laboratories on Earth, but their return remains uncertain as NASA's troubled Mars Sample Return program languishes in limbo.
—Sharmila Kuthunur, Space.com, 19 Dec. 2025
However, more volatility could be in store as bitcoin languishes more than 30% below its record high and nerves linger about the yen carry trade.
—John Towfighi, CNN Money, 1 Dec. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for languishes
Verb
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It's become the default mode of governing for majorities in Congress as bipartisanship on major issues fades away.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
24 Apr. 2026
-
Come evening, the pizza oven glows or a local farm-to-table chef cooks as the light fades.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
23 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Expanding nonmedical exemptions, however, weakens the very protections those medically vulnerable children depend on.—
Sarah Marsicek,
The Orlando Sentinel,
26 Apr. 2026
-
Critics say allowing the department to delay or sideline state investigations weakens one of the last independent checks on government lawyers.—
Jaclyn Diaz,
NPR,
25 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The roof flakes, the porch sags.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
18 Mar. 2026
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Their constant companion in the campaign is the Amazona 180 bag that made its debut on the Loewe runway last October, a slouchy, one-handle style that sags open when left unzipped.—
Miles Socha,
Footwear News,
16 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Niall, for his part, only comes to hate himself more as gay acceptance goes mainstream, his initial distress over his sexuality compounded by humiliation at being unable to get past that distress.—
Inkoo Kang,
New Yorker,
24 Apr. 2026
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There’s a gap between how AI is being used and how it’s being talked about—and that goes well beyond sports.—
Jacob Feldman,
Sportico.com,
23 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
When folding goes wrong, the protein often fails.—
Gerald Bradshaw,
Chicago Tribune,
27 Apr. 2026
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That’s led to questions about whether the California billionaire activism would continue if Mahan’s governor bid fails and the wealth tax passes.—
Bloomberg,
Mercury News,
27 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The seafaring masterpiece sinks every other shark movie in its utter perfection.—
Brian Truitt,
USA Today,
9 Apr. 2026
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Unlike a hard plastic jerkbait, which immediately rises when not in motion, a soft plastic jerkbait hovers or, if on a weighted hook, slowly sinks.—
Bryan Hendricks,
Arkansas Online,
29 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Languishes.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/languishes. Accessed 29 Apr. 2026.
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