languish from

USAGE SUMMARY

"languish from" is correct and usable in written English. You can use it to describe suffering or experiencing prolonged distress or hardship. Example: "The community began to languish from the lack of resources." Alternative expressions include "suffer from" and "struggle with."

✓ Grammatically correct

News & Media

Academia

Wiki

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

4 human-written examples

Radishes in this village grow as big as apples, while the people languish from illiteracy and poverty.

The New York Times

I thought of the story that David had told me, of how Feather's brilliant art work had seemed to languish from the day that Conn betrayed him.

The New Yorker

The cats who are overnight "guests" (Ms. Zuchert would never call them "boarders") will not languish from boredom while they are parked at Biscuits and Bath.

The New York Times

In the past, even with a majority of votes, Democrats in Congress have let all voting reform measures languish, from fixing unreliable voting machines to barring election-day dirty tricks.

Huffington Post

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

55 human-written examples

The Chiefs' win, their first on the road in the Premiership this term, keeps them in sixth, level on 24 points with Bath, but above their West Country rivals due to a better points difference, while the Exiles still languish second-from-bottom, five points above Sale.

BBC

This was where Mr Mugabe languished from 1964 to 1974, having been convicted by the Smith government for "subversive speech".

The Economist

It didn't have to be that way, he wrote: Viacom has spent $14.5bn since 2011 on share buybacks, while its core businesses have languished from an apparent lack of investment.

The Guardian

While Twitter never officially killed off TweetDeck, the product has languished from lack of development over the last several years.

TechCrunch

The world's second-largest burger purveyor languished from 1998 through 2004, with same-store sales that declined or were flat each year.

Forbes

India, weighed down by state-run enterprises, languished from the time of independence in 1947 until 1991, when the IMF forced it to open up after its foreign reserves had dropped to nearly zero.

Forbes

The only problem, then, was that I didn't have a Dreamcast, and so I languished from afar for years, pining to be one of the cool kids.

Vice

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

Ensure the object of 'from' is the direct cause of the decline, such as a lack of resources, interest, or heat.

Common error

Avoid using "languish from" when referring to a physical location or a state of confinement. In cases like prison or obscurity, the correct preposition is usually 'in'. Use 'from' only for the source of the suffering.

Linguistic Context

The phrase "languish from" serves as a verb phrase where the intransitive verb "languish" is complemented by a prepositional phrase starting with "from". As seen in Ludwig, it is used to denote the source or cause of a slow decline or state of misery.

Expression frequency: Rare

Frequent in

News & Media

85%

Academia

10%

Wiki

5%

Less common in

Science

3%

Formal & Business

2%

Social Media

1%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

The analysis reveals that "languish from" is a sophisticated way to describe suffering or decline. Ludwig data highlights its presence in reputable news outlets like The New York Times and The Guardian, where it identifies causes such as neglect, boredom, or environmental stressors. While it can also be used temporally to mark a starting point, its most distinctive usage is causal. It serves as a more descriptive alternative to "suffer from", conveying a poetic sense of wasting away. Writers should be careful not to confuse it with the locational "languish in" to ensure precise meaning.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

suffer from

Provides a more common and direct way to describe distress or illness.

decline from

Focuses on the downward trajectory of quality or health.

wither from

Adds a more botanical or physical sense of shrinking and drying up.

deteriorate from

Emphasizes the worsening of a condition or physical structure.

weaken from

Specifically denotes a loss of strength or power.

waste away from

A more visceral and descriptive way to suggest physical or spiritual decay.

pine from

Suggests suffering that comes specifically from longing or grief.

struggle with

Shifts the focus from passive suffering to active difficulty with a situation.

fade from

Suggests a gradual disappearance rather than a state of suffering.

stagnate due to

Focuses on the lack of growth rather than active suffering or decline.

FAQs

How to use "languish from" in a sentence?

You can use "languish from" to describe suffering or a loss of vitality, such as "the crops began to "wither from" the intense drought" or "students often "languish from boredom" during long lectures".

What is the difference between "languish from" and "languish in"?

"languish from" typically identifies the cause of suffering, like an illness or neglect, whereas "languish in" usually specifies a location or state, such as "languishing in prison" or "languishing in obscurity".

Can I say "suffer from" instead of "languish from"?

Yes, "suffer from" is a more common and direct alternative, though it lacks the specific connotation of fading or wasting away that "languish from" provides.

Which is correct, "languish from" or "languish due to"?

Both are grammatically correct. However, "languish from" is often perceived as more literary, while "languish due to" is more common in technical or modern prose.