Etymograph

English

linger

Linger comes from Middle English lengeren ‘to reside, dwell’, from Old English lenġan ‘to lengthen, delay, extend’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *dlongʰos ‘long’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dlongʰos1‘long’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*langaz2‘long’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*langijaną3‘to lengthen, make long’reconstructed
  4. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*langijan3‘to lengthen, make long’reconstructed
  5. Old Englishc. 450–1150lenġan3‘to lengthen, delay, extend’next step skipped: Middle English lengere
  6. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500lengeren3‘to reside, dwell’
  7. Englishearliest quotation c. 1596–1598linger3

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Proto-Germanic *langaz
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Proto-Germanic *langijaną
  3. 3 Wiktionary, English linger
  4. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: c. 1596–1598, William Shakespeare, The Merchant of Venice: “Still more foole I ſhall appeare / By the…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dlongʰosWiktionary, Proto-Germanic *langaz‘long’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*langazWiktionary, Proto-Germanic *langijaną‘long’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*langijanąWiktionary, English linger‘to lengthen, make long’reconstructed
  4. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*langijanWiktionary, English linger‘to lengthen, make long’reconstructed
  5. Old Englishc. 450–1150lenġanWiktionary, English linger‘to lengthen, delay, extend’next step skipped: Middle English lengere
  6. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500lengerenWiktionary, English linger‘to reside, dwell’
  7. Englishearliest quotation c. 1596–1598lingerWiktionary, English linger. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: c. 1596–1598, William Shakespeare, The Merchant of Venice: “Still more foole I ſhall appeare / By the…”

Formed from long + -er

Proto-Indo-European *dlongʰos ‘long’

Proto-Germanic *langaz ‘long’

Proto-West Germanic *lang ‘long’

Old English lang ‘long, tall, lasting’

Middle English long

English long

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *dlongʰos ‘long’

along, longer, longitude, longitudinal, oblong, elongate, elongation, lunge, longus, longe, 15 more

through Proto-Germanic *langaz ‘long’

long, length, 7 more

Today it means

verb To stay or remain in a place or situation, especially as if unwilling to depart or not easily able to do so.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “linger”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Proto-Germanic *langaz, Proto-Germanic *langijaną. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *dlongʰos / linger

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