Word of the Day

: July 24, 2018

languid

adjective LANG-gwid

What It Means

1 : drooping or flagging from or as if from exhaustion : weak

2 : sluggish in character or disposition : listless

3 : lacking force or quickness of movement : slow

languid in Context

The trial proceeded at a languid pace as each attorney called up a whole roster of witnesses to testify.

"Of all the musicians whose work might cry out for a razzle-dazzle jukebox musical, Jimmy Buffett—he of the languid odes to umbrella drinks and beach vacations—would seem to be at the bottom of the list." — Christopher Kelly, The Star-Ledger (Newark, New Jersey), 23 Mar. 2018

Did You Know?

The letter L holds claim to a payload of words in English that connote a lack of energy or enthusiasm. Two of them—languid and languorous—derive from the same source, the Latin verb languēre ("to languish"). Languid describes the kind of sluggishness that one often experiences from fatigue or weakness ("the illness left her feeling languid"). Languorous applies more to someone who just doesn't feel the will to get up and do anything ("he felt languorous on a rainy Sunday afternoon"). There is also lackadaisical, which implies a halfhearted effort given from lack of care ("lackadaisical seniors just floating along until graduation"), as well as listless, which suggests a lack of spirit caused by physical weakness, dissatisfaction, or sadness ("she was listless for a few weeks following the breakup").