languish

Advancedzipf 2.55

Pronunciation

/ˈlæŋɡwɪʃ/(LANG-gwish)

Part of speech

verbformal

Chinese

憔悴；衰弱；被忽视（在不好的环境中缓慢衰落）

Definition

To grow weak or feeble; to suffer from being stuck in an unpleasant situation.

Word family

  • languishing/ˈlæŋɡwɪʃɪŋ/(adj)衰弱的
  • languor/ˈlæŋɡə/(n)无精打采

Collocations

  • languish in prison
  • languish in obscurity
  • languish at the bottom
  • left to languish

Examples

  1. 1.The project has been languishing for months without funding. (stuck, declining)
  2. 2.He languished in prison for ten years before being exonerated. (suffered in confinement)

Synonyms

  • deteriorate/dɪˈtɪəriəreɪt/— get worse
  • stagnate/stæɡˈneɪt/— stop developing
  • wither/ˈwɪðə/— dry up and decline

Etymology

from Latin "languere" = to be faint/weak — slowly losing strength