LINGERED Synonyms: 100 Similar and Opposite Words

lingered

verb

past tense of linger

as in delayed

to move or act slowly since they were charging by the hour, the house painters lingered in finishing up their work

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Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of lingered But one of them, perhaps too slow, or too confused, lingered a second longer, and the claw opened and snapped shut. — Literary Hub, 28 Sep. 2026 Inside a Brazilian stadium Sunday, the same question lingered as two NFL kickers took turns lining up for potential game-winning field goals. — Andrew Greif, NBC news, 28 Sep. 2026 Negative plays on offense lingered, too, with penalties taking away chunk plays and small mistakes compounding into setbacks. — Joe Arruda, Hartford Courant, 28 Sep. 2026 Watson lingered on the ground for several minutes afterward — so long that backup Shedeur Sanders was brought in for a play after Watson was helped off the field. — Alex Zietlow, Charlotte Observer, 27 Sep. 2026 On the restaurant terrace, guests lingered over a late breakfast after an early-morning session in the open-air Pilates studio. — Rachel Howard, Travel + Leisure, 26 Sep. 2026 In 1980, it was renamed the National Museum of American History, but the tension lingered. — Alec MacGillis, ProPublica, 24 Sep. 2026 Bethann Hardison, Tara Rudes Dann, and Lauren Kulchinsky Levison were amongst those who lingered over the work, taking in the intricate details. — Ruby Ford-Dunker, Vogue, 21 Sep. 2026 One male lingered for several minutes outside its carrier, trying to bite anyone who approached. — Shi En Kim, AZCentral.com, 21 Sep. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for lingered

Verb

Trump’s proclamation would have delayed compliance with the tougher standards from 2027 until 2029, though EPA ultimately repealed them in February.

— Luke Fountain, CNBC, 29 Sep. 2026
Flights are delayed, resulting in crew rest violations, maintenance schedule conflicts, cargo rerouting decisions, fuel reallocation and thousands of passenger rebooking scenarios.

— Abha Dogra, Forbes.com, 29 Sep. 2026

Definition of delayed

Verb

Students sitting with arms linked at the elbows could only see in shards through a picket of shin guards, restricting their view of the area where classmates and roommates were dragged one by one and zip-tied face down on the spring grass.

— Sophie Landres, Artforum, 1 Oct. 2026
As Findley dragged the driver from the truck, Deputy Chase Blatt, driving north on I-35, saw the fire and the driver being pulled from the truck.

— Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 30 Sep. 2026

Definition of dragged

Verb

In a historic first, two olive ridley sea turtles crawled out of the sea within the second week of September and laid their eggs in pits of sand in Seal Beach and Huntington Beach.

— Karen Garcia, Los Angeles Times, 29 Sep. 2026
The technology isn’t perfect, Walsh said; if Gus had crawled beneath a bush to sleep, the camera wouldn’t necessarily find him.

— Hilary Whiteman, CNN Money, 20 Sep. 2026

Definition of crawled

Verb

To open the ceremony, Shirley strolled from the west end of the bridge to the east, where Charley was waiting.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 2 Oct. 2026
Last October, the 31-year-old crypto investor and reality-television star Charlie Zakkour strolled down Beaver Street in the Financial District, trailed by cameras.

— Adriane Quinlan, Curbed, 29 Sep. 2026

Definition of strolled

Verb

Other executives, coaches and support staff loitered in the hall, speaking in hushed tones if at all.

— Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 1 May 2026
In the petition filing, Buckingham wrote that Dick had loitered around his and his family members’ homes, called repeatedly and left threatening voicemails, and taped a photo collage of herself and Buckingham to his mailbox.

— Senior Television, Los Angeles Times, 12 Apr. 2026

Definition of loitered

Verb

Orange is 5-0 for the first time since 2017 and has also crept into the final spot of The Times’ top 25 rankings for the Southland.

— Caleb Otte, Los Angeles Times, 27 Sep. 2026
Twisty the clown crept around, Rubber Man made a second appearance, and black dahlias festooned every table.

— Lauren Sanchez, Vogue, 24 Sep. 2026

Definition of crept

Browse Nearby Words

linger

lingered

lingerer

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“Lingered.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/lingered. Accessed 5 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of lingered

verb

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