linger

Pronunciation: /ˈlɪŋɡɚ/

The English word “linger” has 3 meanings listed here.

verb

To stay or remain in a place or situation, especially as if unwilling to depart or not easily able to do so.
To remain alive or existent although still proceeding toward death or extinction; to die gradually.
To consider or contemplate for a period of time; to engage in analytic thinking or discussion.

Etymology

From Middle English lengeren, frequentative of lengen (“to stay, dwell, tarry”), from Old English lenġan (“to lengthen, delay, extend”), from Proto-West Germanic *langijan, from Proto-Germanic *langijaną (compare West Frisian lingje (“to linger”), Dutch lengen, German längen, Icelandic lengja (“to lengthen”)), related to the root of English long. Equivalent to linge or long + -er (frequentative…

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Definitions are from Wiktionary, extracted by Kaikki.org, and are available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.