lingered

verb

past tense of linger
as in delayed
to move or act slowly since they were charging by the hour, the house painters lingered in finishing up their work

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of lingered Moton lingered on the turf for a while, punching the turf in pain and dread, before a cart came out to transport him to the locker room. — Alex Zietlow, Charlotte Observer, 25 Oct. 2026 But the nearly three dozen residents who still live there say the town is still filled with those who lingered after their deaths. — Joy Benedict, CBS News, 22 Oct. 2026 The shark lingered at the canal’s mouth but eventually swam to sea, Busan Mayor Chun Jae-soo said. — ABC News, 21 Oct. 2026 De Palma’s camera lingered just a bit too longingly on the naked adolescent girls in the showers, although the scene did capture Carrie’s extreme vulnerability in that moment. — ArsTechnica, 21 Oct. 2026 All the prejudices my characters are designed to expose haven’t just lingered—they’ve metastasized. — Lars Brandle, Billboard, 21 Oct. 2026 Shirley lingered in parking lots and asked to enter childcare centers, taking refusals as evidence that the centers weren’t actually caring for children. — Mia Sato, The Verge, 20 Oct. 2026 At a college fair featuring hundreds of schools, Roland, who lingered for about three hours, didn’t see anyone approach the Cornell booth. — Leah Asmelash, CNN Money, 15 Oct. 2026 That figure declined to 12% as the pandemic lingered in 2021 and to about 3% in 2024. — David Wickert, AJC.com, 12 Oct. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for lingered
  1. delayed
  2. dragged
  3. poked
  4. crawled
  5. strolled
  6. loitered
  7. crept
Verb
  • But technical and regulatory hurdles repeatedly delayed certification of the largest version of Boeing's bestselling 737 family.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 21 Oct. 2026
  • Results were delayed after late openings forced more than 100 polling stations to extend voting hours Monday.
    — CBS News, CBS News, 20 Oct. 2026
Definition of delayed
Verb
  • Malkin controlled Lapierre’s dump-in attempt near the blue line, toe-dragged past Panther defenseman Gustav Forsling in the slot and beat Black with a wrist shot.
    — Miami Herald, Miami Herald, 23 Oct. 2026
  • In my opinion, the president and his incompetent, corrupt acolytes have debased the office and dragged the good name of America through the mud.
    — Voice of the People, New York Daily News, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of dragged
Verb
  • Kessler, standing nearby during Williams’ postgame news conference, poked his head out from behind a black curtain and gave his teammate a thumbs-up.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 17 Oct. 2026
  • Already poked, the league bear hasn’t exactly gone into hibernation, either.
    — Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of poked
Verb
  • Giamanco crawled in through a shot-out window, reached the special education classroom and reracked his firearm in preparation for a deadly confrontation.
    — David K. Li, NBC news, 23 Oct. 2026
  • In May 2025, after Williams shut off the water in a cell, 10 inmates removed a toilet, crawled through a gap in the wall and scaled a fence out of the jail.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of crawled
Verb
  • Moments later, a male lion strolled out of the thin trees behind me, settling by the pond for a drink.
    — Samantha Falewée, Condé Nast Traveler, 21 Oct. 2026
  • Onstage, two hundred townsfolk sang, and a stilt walker strolled.
    — Sarah Larson, New Yorker, 19 Oct. 2026
Definition of strolled
Verb
  • Other executives, coaches and support staff loitered in the hall, speaking in hushed tones if at all.
    — Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 1 May 2026
  • In the petition filing, Buckingham wrote that Dick had loitered around his and his family members’ homes, called repeatedly and left threatening voicemails, and taped a photo collage of herself and Buckingham to his mailbox.
    — Senior Television, Los Angeles Times, 12 Apr. 2026
Definition of loitered
Verb
  • By spring, with the opportunity fading for a mass relocation of homes and businesses, optimism crept back into public discourse.
    — Abe Streep, ProPublica, 21 Oct. 2026
  • Europe has crept back on the scene in a real negative way, this time with France on the hot seat.
    — Jim Cramer, CNBC, 12 Oct. 2026
Definition of crept

Browse Nearby Words

linger
lingered
lingerer
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Cite this Entry

“Lingered.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/lingered. Accessed 28 Oct. 2026.

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