- 1[intransitive] to continue to exist for longer than expected The faint smell of her perfume lingered in the room. linger on The civil war lingered on well into the 1930s.
- 2[intransitive] (+ adv./prep.) to stay somewhere for longer because you do not want to leave; to spend a long time doing something She lingered for a few minutes to talk to Nick. We lingered over breakfast on the terrace.
- 3[intransitive] linger (on somebody/something) to continue to look at someone or something or think about something for longer than usual His eyes lingered on the diamond ring on her finger.
- 4[intransitive] linger (on) to stay alive but become weaker He lingered on for several months after the heart attack.
linger
verbNAmE//ˈlɪŋɡər//
Verb Forms present simple I / you / we / they linger he / she / it lingers
past simple lingered
-ing form lingering
Check pronunciation: linger