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View synonyms for

linger

[ling-ger]

verb (used without object)

  1. to remain or stay on in a place longer than is usual or expected, as if from reluctance to leave.

    We lingered awhile after the party.

    Synonyms: ,
  2. to remain alive; continue or persist, although gradually dying, ceasing, disappearing, etc..

    She lingered a few months after the heart attack. Such practices still linger among the older natives.

  3. to dwell in contemplation, thought, or enjoyment.

    to linger over the beauty of a painting.

  4. to be tardy in action; delay; dawdle.

    to linger in discharging one's duties.

    Synonyms:
  5. to walk slowly; saunter along.

    Synonyms:


verb (used with object)

  1. to pass (time, life, etc.) in a leisurely or a tedious manner (usually followed by away orout ).

    We lingered away the whole summer at the beach.

  2. Archaic.to draw out or protract.

linger

/ ˈɪŋɡə /

verb

  1. to delay or prolong departure

  2. to go in a slow or leisurely manner; saunter

  3. to remain just alive for some time prior to death

  4. to persist or continue, esp in the mind

  5. to be slow to act; dither; procrastinate

“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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Other Word Forms

  • lingerer noun
  • lingeringly adverb
  • outlinger verb (used with object)
  • overlinger verb (used without object)
  • unlingering adjective
  • ˈԲԲ adverb
  • ˈԲ noun
  • ˈԲԲ adjective
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Word History and Origins

Origin of linger1

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English lengeren “to dwell, remain,” literally, “to delay repeatedly,” from lengen, Old English lengan “to delay, lengthen, prolong”; long 1, -er 6
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Word History and Origins

Origin of linger1

C13 (northern dialect) lengeren to dwell, from lengen to prolong, from Old English lengan; related to Old Norse lengja; see long 1
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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

"It's been lingering for the last few weeks, and I have had back issues before," she said.

From

Because of these lingering gender norms, the barrier for dads to seek support can be high.

From

Still, Snell said after two months of lingering shoulder pain earlier this year, the breakthrough he has experienced in the last two weeks has renewed his confidence about how he’ll perform when he returns.

From

Indeed, whatever tensions lingered from October had been replaced over the first two months of this season.

From

"It lingers in the air for somewhere around two to three weeks," she tells me when I go to visit in her home on Dartmoor in the south-west of England.

From

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