long meaning: definition, etymology and quotations

long

adj

UK /lɒŋ/ · US /lɑŋ/

Etymology

From Middle English long, lang, from Old English long, lang (“long, tall, lasting”), from Proto-West Germanic *lang, from Proto-Germanic *langaz (“long”), from Proto-Indo-European *dlongʰos (“long”). Cognates Cognate with Scots lang (“long”), Yola lhaung, long (“long”), North Frisian long, lung, lüng (“long”), Saterland Frisian loang (“long”), West Frisian lang (“long”), Cimbrian lång (“long”), Dutch, German, and Low German lang (“long”), Luxembourgish laang (“long”), Mòcheno lònk (“long”), Vilamovian łaong (“long”), Yiddish לאַנג (lang, “long”), Danish, Norwegian Bokmål, and Norwegian Nynorsk lang (“long”), Faroese and Icelandic langur (“long”), Swedish lång (“long”), Gothic 𐌻𐌰𐌲𐌲𐍃 (laggs, “long”); also Latin longus (“long”) (whence French long (“long”), Italian lungo (“long”), Portuguese longo (“long”), Spanish luengo (“long”)), Ancient Greek δολιχός (dolikhós, “long; wearisome”), Albanian gjatë (“long; tall”), Latvian ilgs (“long”), Lithuanian ilgas (“long”), Belarusian до́ўгі (dówhi, “long”), Bulgarian дъ́лъг (dǎ́lǎg, “long”), Czech dlúhý (“long”), Macedonian долг (dolg, “long”), Polish długi (“long”), Russian дли́нный (dlínnyj, “lengthy, long”), до́лгий (dólgij, “long”), Serbo-Croatian ду̏г, dȕg (“long”), Slovak dlhý (“long”), Slovene dolg (“long”), Ukrainian до́вгий (dóvhyj, “long”), Ossetian даргъ (darǧ, “late”), Central Kurdish دێر (dêr), درەنگ (dreng, “late”), Northern Kurdish dereng (“late”), Persian دیر (dēr / dir, “late; long”), درنگ (derang, “delay”), Sanskrit दीर्घ (dīrgha, “long”) (whence Bengali দীর্ঘ (dirgho, “long; tall”), Dhivehi ދިގު (digu, “long, lengthy”), Kalasha driga, dríga (“long; tall”), Kholosi taɽgo (“long”), Khowar درونگ (drung, “long”), Hindi दीर्घ (dīrgh, “long; tall; weighty”), Nepali दिघो (digho, “stable”), Odia ଦୀର୍ଘ (dirgha, “long”), Sinhalese දිග (diga, “long”), Urdu دیرگھ (dīrgh, “long; tall; weighty”)), Kamkata-viri drëgeř, drëgëř, drëŋëň, dërëgeň (“long; tall”), Prasuni jigni (“long; tall”). The word shows the regular historical change of a to o before certain consonant clusters such as ng (compare with other examples in Middle and Modern English such as bond, song, throng, and wrong). The o-form may have also been reinforced by Old French long, from Latin longus, from the same Indo-European word. Doublet of lungo and lunge.

19 senses

1Having much distance in space from one end to the other.
2Specifically, having much distance in a horizontal…
3Travelling a great distance.
4Having a long penis.
5Passing or landing ahead of or beyond the intended…
6Going beyond the intended target.
7Having great duration.
8Seeming to last a lot of time, due to being boring…
9Not short; tall.
10Possessing or owning stocks, bonds, commodities, or…
11Of a fielding position, close to the boundary (or closer…
12Of betting odds, offering a very large return for a small wager.
13Occurring or coming after an extended interval; distant…
14In great supply; abundant.
15Clipping of taking a long time.
16stupid; annoying; bullshit
17serious; deadly.
18Measuring 8½ in × 13 in.
19Measuring 8½ in × 14 in.

Having much distance in space from one end to the other.

I need a long piece of wood.
It’s a long way from the Earth to the Moon.

4 more examples

How long was your newborn baby?
We expressed our readiness, and in ten minutes were in the station wagon, rolling rapidly down the long drive, for it was then after nine. We passed on the way the van of the guests from Asquith.1897 December (indicated as 1898), Winston Churchill, chapter V, in The Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC:
The face which emerged was not reassuring.[…]. He was not a mongol but there was a deficiency of a sort there, and it was not made more pretty by a latter-day hair cut which involved eccentrically long elf-locks and oiled black curls.1963, Margery Allingham, chapter 17, in The China Governess: A Mystery, London: Chatto & Windus, →OCLC:
A mature silkworm is an impressive 2¾ inches (70 mm) long and eats 50,000 times its mature body weight over the course of its development.2026, Elise Young, “Yagaa: Reviving Sericulture in Southern Mexico”, in Spin Off, volume L, number 1, page 16:

Specifically, having much distance in a horizontal dimension (see also Usage Notes below).

This table is long but not very high.

Travelling a great distance.

Smith hoofs a long ball up to Jones.

Informal Having a long penis.

My ex was very strong but not very long.

› Travelling or extending too great a distance…

Usually, Of weapons fire Passing or landing ahead of or beyond the intended target or location.

Landing aircraft

The plane touched down long and overran the end of the runway.
Juneau was making good time with the other surviving U.S. Navy ships, despite her damage, when the I-26 spotted her and sent a salvo of Type 95 torpedoes in her direction. Passing between the Helena and San Francisco, some indication being they had actually been shot at the San Francisco and gone long because San Francisco was travelling significantly slower than expected, they nonetheless hit Juneau and detonated the ship’s magazine.2021 March 10, Drachinifel, 28:10 from the start, in Guadalcanal Campaign - The Big Night Battle: Night 1 (IJN 3(?) : 2 USN), archived from the original on 07 Nov 2022:

Hobbies, Lifestyle, Sports Of a ball or shot Going beyond the intended target.

That forehand was long. It landed two feet beyond the baseline.
The pass was long and was gathered by the opposing goalkeeper.

Having great duration.

His speech was long and dull.
The pyramids of Egypt have been around for a long time.

2 more examples

I took a long look at the house, knowing it was for the last time.
I had occasion […] to make a somewhat long business trip to Chicago, and on my return […] I found Farrar awaiting me in the railway station. He smiled his wonted fraction by way of greeting, […], and finally leading me to his buggy, turned and drove out of town. I was completely mystified at such an unusual proceeding.1897 December (indicated as 1898), Winston Churchill, chapter II, in The Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC:

Seeming to last a lot of time, due to being boring, tedious, tiring, irksome, etc.

It took us three long weeks to clear the stones from the field.
It'll be a long journey home for the travelling supporters after that 5-0 defeat.

1 more example

What I suffered with that rein for four long months in my lady’s carriage, it would be hard to describe, but I am quite sure that, had it lasted much longer, either my health or my temper would have given way.[1877], Anna Sewell, “A Strike for Liberty”, in Black Beauty: […], London: Jarrold and Sons, […], →OCLC, part II, page 109:

Ireland, UK, Dated Not short; tall.

The colonel and his sponsor made a queer contrast: Greystone [the sponsor] long and stringy, with a face that seemed as if a cold wind was eternally playing on it.1908, W[illiam] B[lair] M[orton] Ferguson, chapter I, in Zollenstein, New York, N.Y.: D. Appleton & Company, →OCLC:
Bless ’em all, bless ’em all, the long, the short and the tall.1940, Fred Godfrey, “Bless 'Em All”performed by George Formby:

Business, Finance Possessing or owning stocks, bonds, commodities, or other financial instruments with the aim of benefiting from an expected rise in their value.

I’m long in DuPont.
I have a long position in DuPont.

Ball games, Cricket, Games, Hobbies, Lifestyle, Sports Of a fielding position, close to the boundary (or closer to the boundary than the equivalent short position).

Gambling, Games Of betting odds, offering a very large return for a small wager.

Occurring or coming after an extended interval; distant in time; far away.

But Campbell thus did ſhut vp all in ieſt, / Braue Knights and Ladies, certes ye doe wrong / To ſtirre vp ſtrife, when moſt vs needeth reſt, / That we may vs reſerue both freſh and ſtrong, / Againſt the Turneiment which is not long.1596, Edmund Spenser, “Book IIII, Canto IIII”, in The Faerie Queene. […], part II (books IV–VI), London: […] [Richard Field] for William Ponsonby, →OCLC, page 55:

Multicultural London English, Slang, Of money In great supply; abundant.

African-American Vernacular

I’m talkin’ ’bout… I’m talkin’ ’bout that long money.2011 December 18, “Ballin' Uncontrollably” (track 7), in King Mather's LP, performed by Eminem:
Me and broke niggas, we don’t get along (Nah). Hair long (Long), money long (Yeah).2012 November 8, “I'm Different” (track 6), in Based on a T.R.U. Story, performed by 2 Chainz:

4 more examples

Never lie, money longer than Pinnochio.2013 June 12, “Shoulda Woulda” (track 16), in Project Baby, performed by Kodak Black:
Rent-a-cars we road run, money longer than train smoke.2013 October 7, “No Regrets” (track 7), in My Name Is My Name, performed by Pusha T:
Money so long, it’s offensive.2016 November 24, “Upgrade You”performed by Kash Doll:
Don't get it twisted, I love my fans. Everything about them keeps me strong. They're the reason why my money be long. Trust me bro, my money be long.2017, “Uber Everywhere Freestyle 2”performed by Cadet (rapper):

Multicultural London English, Abbreviation, Clipping, Slang Clipping of taking a long time.

"Cadet, Cadet!" Not every day, fam. Can't you see why it's long? I just wanna get my creps and be gone.2017, “Uber Everywhere Freestyle 2”performed by Cadet (rapper):
BOY: B, this is long for man, you know. B: Keep complaining. BOY: Fucking gemming it with these things (he continues collecting empty drinks cans).2022 March 18, Ronan Bennett, Gerry Jackson, Tyrone Rashard, Sagirah Gammon, 00:35:44 from the start, in Brady Hood, director, Top Boy (Good Morals) (4), episode 1 (TV), spoken by unnamed boy, girl called B:

1 more example

INCHEZ: Man this is long! We’ve been in here for time!2023 January 15, Layton Williams, 12:51 from the start, in Freddy Syborn, director, Bad Education (Prison) (4), episode 3 (TV), spoken by Inchez (Anthony J. Abraham):

Multicultural London English, Broadly, Slang stupid; annoying; bullshit

[Verse 1: Sleeks]: Keep thinking about Ps that I need but it’s long. All these things that I've done in the streets got me on my knees trying to reason with God. B-B beefin’ is long but I might still greeze up a Don.2015 September 18, “Brand New” (track 6), in Don't Panic, performed by Smoke Boys:
MOBEEN: I do love nature when it’s on television and David Attenborough’s presenting. I hate nature in real life! Smells like shite around here! Plants and (he waves a fly away) …plants and that. It’s so long!2017 December 17, Guz Khan, Andy Milligan, “Upper Room” (00:38 from the start), in Ollie Parsons, director, Man Like Mobeen (1), episode 3 (TV), spoken by Mobeen Deen (Guz Khan):

2 more examples

DUSHANE: I’m stepping back from the roads now. All of that shit is long! And by next year, I want to be completely legit, then it’s just me, you and Tish.2022 March 18, Ronan Bennett, Gerry Jackson, Tyrone Rashard, Sagirah Gammon, 00:15:46 from the start, in Brady Hood, director, Top Boy (Good Morals) (4), episode 1 (TV), spoken by Dushane (Ashley Walters):
Nah fuck that I don't like mixing my circles like that. Plus if some shit goes bad I gotta be in the middle it's all long2023 February 18, Simba-xiv, “Most Guys Know That They're^([sic]) Friends Aren't Shit With Women”, in Reddit (subreddit: BlackPeopleTwitter):

Multicultural London English, Broadly, Slang serious; deadly.

JAMIE: Yo, if I see you man round here again, it is long for you!2022 March 18, Ronan Bennett, Gerry Jackson, Tyrone Rashard, 32:20 from the start, in William Stefan Smith, director, Top Boy (Prove Yourself) (4), episode 8 (TV), spoken by Jamie (Micheal Ward):

Canada, US, Of paper or document layouts Measuring 8½ in × 13 in.

Philippines, Of paper or document layouts Measuring 8½ in × 14 in.

Synonyms: deep, extended, high, lengthy, tall, prolonged, lengthful, lengthsome, long, longsome, prolix
Antonyms: low, shallow, short, brief, wide
Derived terms: 487 terms
2 sauces long, African long-tailed shrike, age-long, a little goes a long way, a little of something goes a long way, a long time coming, a long time in coming, armlong, as broad as long, as long as, as the day is long, Attenborough's long-beaked echidna, a week is a long time in politics, before long, blocklong, block-long, by a long chalk, by a long shot, by a long way, by long chalks, Cadena's long-tongued bat, centuries-long, Chinese long bean, come a long way, daddy longlegs, draw a long bow, draw the long bow, edgelong, erelong, extralong, face as long as a fiddle, feetlong, footlong, for as long as one can remember, for long, for so long a time, for the long haul, go a long way, go back a long way, go into the long grass, half-long, he who sups with the devil should have a long spoon, hit into the long grass, how long, how long is a piece of string, inchlong, in the long run, in the long term, it's a long road that has no turning, kick into the long grass, Land of the Long White Cloud, linger, little pitchers have long ears, livelong, live long and prosper, Lombard, long a, Long-a-Coming, long-acting, long-acuminate, longage, long-ago, long ago, long and short stitch, longarm, long arm, long-armed squid, long arm of the law, long arms, long arm statute, long-arm statute, Long Ashton, long as one's arm, long-awaited, long ball, long ballot, long Barnaby, long-barrelled, Long Beach, longbeak, long-beaked bald rush, longbeard, long beer, long betwixt the fingers, long-billed, long bit, long black, long block, longboard, longboat, longboi, long bond, long bone, Longbone, long-bonneted, longbow, Long Branch, Long Buckby, long bullets, long-burning, longcase, long case, longcat, Longcat, long-chain, long ciliary nerve, longclaw, Long Clawson, long clothes, long-coat, longcoat, long coats, Long Compton, long con, long corner, long COVID, Long Crendon, long-cripple, longcut, long-distance, long division, longdog, long dozen, long-drawn, long-drawn-out, Long Drax, long drink, long drink of water, long drop, long drum, Long Duckmanton, long e, longear, long-eared, long-eared bat, long-eared fox, long-eared guinea pig, long-eared owl, Long Eaton, long egg, long eighteenth century, long ess, long-established, long exact sequence, long face, long-faced, long-faced miner bee, Longfellow, long-felt, long figure, long file name, long filename, longfin, long finger, long-fingered frog, long firm, Long Flat, long-focus lens, long-footed potoroo, Longford, longform, long-form, long-furred, long fuse, long game, long ghost, long-grain, longgrass, long grasser, long-grasser, long gray line, long green, long gross, Long Gully, long gun, long hair, longhair, long hair don't care, long-haired, longhaired, long-haired dictionary, long hair sedge, longhand, long handle, long-haul, long haul, long-haul COVID, long-hauler, long-hauling, longheaded, long-headed, long-held, Long Hill, long home, long hop, longhorn, longhorned, long-horned, long-horned beetle, long-horned grasshopper, long hour, long house, longhouse, long-house, long hundred, longhunter, long i, longie, longies, long in coming, long integer, long int, long in the tooth, longish, Long Island, Long Itchington, longjaw, long-jawed spider, Long Jetty, long-john, long john, long-johns, long johns, long jump, long-jumper, Long Key, Long Lake, long lap penalty, long-lasting, longleaf, long leet, long-legged, long-legged buzzard, long-legged fly, long legs, long lens, long-life, longlimbed, long line, longline, long-line bra, long-line brassiere, long-lining, longlist, long list, long-lived, longliver, long live the revolution, long-living, long-locked, long-lost, longly, long maize, Long Man, long march through the institutions, Long Marston, Long Marton, long measure, Long Melford, long memory, long meter, longminded, long-minded, long mode, long-neck, longneck, longnecked, long-necked, longness, long night moon, long nineteenth century, longnose, long-nose, long-nosed potoroo, long o, long odds, long off, long on, long oo, long paddock, Longparish, long passive, long peace, long-pending, long pepper, long-period, long pig, longplay, long-play, long-player, long-playing, long-podded cowpea, long polling, long pork, long posterior ciliary artery, long pot, Long Prairie, long-press, Long Preston, long price, long profile, long purples, long purse, long QT syndrome, longrange, long-range, long-ranger, long ranger, long-ranging, long rice, long rifle, longrifle, Long River, long robe, Long Rock, Longrock, long room, long row to hoe, long run, long run for a short slide, long-running, long s, long scale, long screwdriver, long Second World War, long sell, long service leave, longship, longshoot, long shot, longshot, long sight, long-sighted, long six, longsleeved, long-sleeved, long-sleever, long-slip, long snap, long snapper, long-snouted seahorse, longsome, long-span, long spine board, long-spined bullhead, longspun, long-spun, longspur, long-spurred violet, Longstaff, Longstanton, longstemmed, long-stop, long stop, long story, long story short, Long Stratton, long streak of misery, Long Street, long-sufferance, long-suffering, longsuffering, long suit, Long Sutton, long sweetening, longsword, longtail, long tail, long-tail boat, long-tail Covid, long-tailed, long-tailed field mouse, long-tailed hawk, long-tailed paradise whydah, long-tailed parakeet, long-tailed parroquet, long-tailed planigale, long-tailed shrew, long-tailed skipper, long take, longterm, long-term Covid, long-termer, long-termism, long-termist, long term, long-term, long-term memory, long-term potentiation, long thousand, long throw, long time, longtime, long-time, long title, long-toed stint, long-toed water beetle, long-togs, long Tom, long ton, long-tongued, long-tongued bat, long track, long trousers, long u, long underwear, long vac, long vacation, long vax, long vehicle, Longview, long view, long-visaged, long vowel, long-vowel mark, long-waisted, longwall, longward, longwave, long wave, long way around, long weekend, long-welded, longwhiles, long whist, long white radish, long-winded, longwing, longwise, Long Wittenham, longwool, longword, longy, Major's long-fingered bat, Major's long-tailed tenrec, make a long arm, medium long shot, Mesoamerican Long Count calendar, midlong, night of long knives, Night of the Long Knives, night of the long knives, nonlong, not long, not long for, not long for the world, not long for this world, old long syne, old sins cast long shadows, old sins have long shadows, overlong, over the long haul, Pallas's long-tongued bat, Patton's long-tongued bat, Pearson's long-clawed shrew, pull the long bow, punt into the long grass, push into the long grass, put on the long finger, semi-long, semilong, sharp-long, short accounts make long friends, short reckonings make long friends, sidelong, Sir David's long-beaked echidna, soft-long, so long, so long as, Stanton Long, stretching the long bow, stretch the long bow, superlong, take a long walk off a short pier, take a long walk on a short pier, take the long view, the candle that burns twice as bright burns half as long, the long and short, the long way around the barn, tongue long enough to cut one's own throat, tongue long enough to cut one's throat, ultralong, very-long-baseline interferometry, very-long-chain, waistlong, yard-long bean, you're a long time dead
Related terms: broad, wide
Hypernyms: large
Hyponyms: 25 terms
daylong, day-long, days-long, dayslong, decade-long, decadelong, decades-long, fortnight-long, hour-long, hours-long, long-standing, month-long, months-long, weeklong, week-long, weeks-long, yard-long, yearlong, year-long, yearslong, years-long, deep, tall, elongated, extended

long

noun

Etymology

8 senses

1A long vowel.
2A long syllable.
3A note formerly used in music, one half the length of a…
4A long integer variable, twice the size of an int, two…
5An entity with a long position in an asset; for example…
6A long-maturity security, such as a ten- or twenty-year bond.
7Clipping of long vacation (“summer vacation”).
8Ellipsis of long bond paper.

Human sciences, Linguistics, Sciences A long vowel.

In French most vowels are half-long, and are only occasionally lengthened or shortened into full longs and shorts.1877, Henry Sweet, A Handbook of Phonetics, volume 2, page 60:

Human sciences, Linguistics, Phonology, Prosody, Sciences A long syllable.

Entertainment, Lifestyle, Music A note formerly used in music, one half the length of a large, twice that of a breve.

Computing, Engineering, Mathematics, Natural sciences, Physical sciences, Programming, Sciences A long integer variable, twice the size of an int, two or four times the size of a short, and half of a long long.

A long is typically 64 bits in a 32-bit environment.

Business, Finance An entity with a long position in an asset; for example, a trader or investor possessing an amount of a company's shares.

Every uptick made the longs cheer.

Business, Finance A long-maturity security, such as a ten- or twenty-year bond.

Likewise, if borrowers prefer to sell short-maturity issues at the time lenders prefer to invest in longs, as is the case when interest rates are expected to fall, longer maturity issues will tend to yield less than shorter maturity issues.1977, Jerome B. Cohen, Edward D. Zinbarg, Arthur Zeikel, Guide to Intelligent Investing, →OCLC, page 203:
"U.S. Treasury Market Structure", https://www.mfaalts.org/issue/u-s-treasury-market-structure/ Hedge funds are constrained in how much leverage they can utilize, in part because the futures contracts they are shorting against their Treasury longs have significant initial margin requirements.

Abbreviation, Clipping, Dated Clipping of long vacation (“summer vacation”).

“[…] Did I not forbid all these nicknames and all this Oxfordish, by proclamation, last Long.” “Last Long?” “Hem! last protracted vacation.”1863, Charles Reade, Hard Cash:

Philippines, Abbreviation, Ellipsis Ellipsis of long bond paper.

long

verb

Etymology

Business, Finance To take a long position in.

The left panel shows the profile of a portfolio consisting of longing a call and shorting a put.2004, Thomas S. Y. Ho with Sang Bin Lee and Sang-bin Yi, The Oxford Guide to Financial Modeling, page 84:

long

adv

Etymology From Middle English longe, lange, from Old English longe, lange, from the adjective (see above).

Hobbies, Lifestyle, Sports Over a great distance in space.

Every golfer wants to hit the ball long and straight.

Hobbies, Lifestyle, Sports Over too great a distance, beyond the target.

She hit her return long and lost the point.

For a particular duration (specified by additional qualifying words accompanying it).

How long is it until the next bus arrives?
She has known us as long as you.

4 more examples

I’ve waited long enough.
He slept all day long.
Don't stay longer than two hours.
The meeting has already gone on much too long.

Adjective, Adverb, Participle For a long time.

Placed before a verb; preposition; placed before a verb; preposition

Paris has long been considered one of the most cultured cities in the world.
By eight o’clock, the food will be long gone.

4 more examples

I seldom stay long after class, but yesterday I spent the evening and long into the night.
Long live the Queen.
The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here.1863 November 19, Abraham Lincoln, Dedicatory Remarks (Gettysburg Address)^(https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Gettysburg_Address_(Bliss_copy)), near Soldiers' National Cemetery, →LCCN, Bliss copy, page 2:
The world was awake to the 2nd of May, but Mayfair is not the world, and even the menials of Mayfair lie long abed.1922, Michael Arlen, “Ep./4/2”, in “Piracy”: A Romantic Chronicle of These Days:

Rare For a long time.

Placed by itself after a positive verb

It’s an earth song,— And I’ve been waiting long for an earth song. It’s a spring song,— And I’ve been waiting long for a spring song.[…] I have been waiting long for this spring song.1925, Langston Hughes, “An Earth Song”, in Alain LeRoy Locke, editor, The New Negro: An Interpretation, New York: Albert and Charles Boni, page 142:

A long time (see usage notes).

Will this interview take long?
I haven’t got long to live.

3 more examples

They are in a hurry; they can’t wait for too long.
My liefe (ſayd ſhe) ye know, that long ygo, / Whileſt ye in durance dwelt, ye to me gaue / A little mayde, the which ye chylded tho ; / The ſame againe if now ye liſt to haue, / The ſame is yonder Lady, whom high God did ſaue.1596, Edmund Spenser, “Book VI, Canto XII”, in The Faerie Queene. […], part II (books IV–VI), London: […] [Richard Field] for William Ponsonby, →OCLC, stanza 17, page 512:
[Verse 1]:[…]Be there in five, man’s taking long. Are you still there? No fam, I’m already gone.2021 August 19, “Drake”performed by Most Certi:

Derived terms: a creaking door hangs long on its hinges, go long, long live, long lost, long since, one should live so long, since long, take long
Related terms: far, wide, broad

long

verb

Etymology From Middle English longen, from Old English langian (“to long for, yearn after, grieve for, be pained, lengthen, grow longer, summon, belong”), from Proto-West Germanic *langōn, from Proto-Germanic *langōną (“to desire, long for”), from Proto-Indo-European *lengʷʰ- (“to be easy, be quick, jump, move around, vary”). Cognate with German langen (“to reach, be sufficient”), Swedish langa (“to push, pass by hand”), Icelandic langa (“to want, desire”), Dutch, German verlangen (“to desire, want, long for”).

To await, aspire, desire greatly (something to occur or to be true).

She longed for him to come back.
The Rabbit sighed. He thought it would be a long time before this magic called Real happened to him. He longed to become Real, to know what it felt like; and yet the idea of growing shabby and losing his eyes and whiskers was rather sad.1922, Margery Williams, The Velveteen Rabbit:

Derived terms: belong, forlong, long for, longing

long

adj

Etymology From Middle English long, lang, an aphetic form of Middle English ilong, ylong, from Old English ġelong, ġelang (“along, belonging, depending, consequent”); the verb later reinterpreted as an aphetic form of belong.

Archaic On account of, because of.

I am of opinion, that in regarde of theſe debauches and lewde actions, fathers may, in ſome ſort, be blamed, and that it is onely long of them.1603, Michel de Montaigne, translated by John Florio, Essays, II.8, page 224:

long

verb

Archaic To be appropriate to, to pertain or belong to.

A goodly Armour, and full rich aray, / Which long’d to Angela, the Saxon Queene, / All fretted round with gold, and goodly wel beseene.1590, Edmund Spenser, “Book III, Canto III”, in The Faerie Queene. […], London: […] [John Wolfe] for William Ponsonbie, →OCLC:
Tis well, and hold your owne in any case / With such austeritie as longeth to a father.c. 1590–1592 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Taming of the Shrew”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act IV, scene iv]:

long

verb

Etymology From Middle English longen, from Old English langian (“to belong, pertain”), from Old English *lang, which is of uncertain origin yet related to Old English ġelang (“dependent, attainable, present, belonging, consequent”), Old Saxon gilang (“ready, available”).

Obsolete To belong.

Now ſend Ambaſſage to thy neighbor Kinges, And let them know the Perſian King is chang’d: From one that knew not what a King ſhould doe, To one that can commaund what longs there to: […]c. 1587–1588 (date written), [Christopher Marlowe], Tamburlaine the Great. […] The First Part […], 2nd edition, part 1, London: […] [R. Robinson for] Richard Iones, […], published 1592, →OCLC; reprinted as Tamburlaine the Great (A Scolar Press Facsimile), Menston, Yorkshire; London: Scolar Press, 1973, →ISBN, Act II, scene v:

Entry derived from the Wiktionary, under licence CC BY-SA 4.0 — list of authors.

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