来自PIE*sleg,松的，松散的，词源同lax,slack.引申词义松软无力的，消瘦的，后用来指长期受苦，煎熬。

1. Pollard continues to languish in prison.

波拉德继续受牢狱之苦。

2. She continues to languish in a foreign prison.

她被继续囚禁在一所外国的监狱里。

3. No one knows for certain how many refugees wander the world today, or languish in camps without a permanent place of settlement.

无人清楚如今有多少难民在到处流浪，或有多少人流离失所，在难民营里受苦。

4. New products languish on the drawing board.

新产品在计划阶段即告失败。

5. New inventions often languish in the laboratory for years.

新的发明总会在实验室里多年无人问津.