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longing

longing

69 4.2
A strong wish for someone or something you cannot have
  • noun
  • /ˈlɔŋɪŋ/
translation icon : anhelo
  • And I would just pour through them with a longing to one day understand.
  • deep longing
  • human longing
  • longing and loneliness

love is an effort. Love is a longing to include

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Examples

  • Many people experience a longing for love when they are alone.

  • But their eyes, there's such longing in their eyes.

  • So I think, you know, the longing to matter is extremely deep.

  • What is that longing for connection with others?

  • And I felt the longing for my home so far away.

  • At that point, I was just longing for some sort of normalcy.

  • How sorrow and longing make us whole.

  • These senses are the fruits of a lifetime of longing.

  • Yeah, it's fascinating, the longing for love and nurture.

  • John thinks he's being casual, but his longing for some kind of parental connection is obvious.

    Fiction book (1991)

Synonyms

desire
vslonging
1.6

A strong wish to have or experience something

limits this wanting to cases where the object is unlikely to be had
craving
vslonging
78 3.7

A very strong desire for things like food or cigarettes

is similar intensity but focuses on things unlikely or inaccessible
want
vslonging
27 1.0

A strong desire for something you wish to have

is stronger and adds the idea that the object is unlikely or unreachable
hankering
vslonging
11 6.6

A strong wish to have or do something

is about intense wanting but highlights the unlikely availability
yearning
vslonging
8 5.5

A strong, lasting wish for something you want but cannot get

matches this persistent, unlikely wanting but is more general in tone
pining
vslonging
3 7.8

Missing someone or something very much and feeling sad

is similar in sadness but applies to any unlikely desired object
wistfulness
vslonging
2 6.8

A gentle, sad feeling of missing the past

is stronger and explicitly about wanting what one likely cannot have
wishfulness
vslonging
  • Literature
1 6.7

A feeling of strong hope for something unlikely to happen

covers similar unlikely wanting but without the hopeful imagining
lovesickness
vslonging
1 7.7

A deep sadness and strong wish to be with a person you care about

is more general, covering strong wanting for anything unlikely, not only love
desideration
vslonging
  • Archaic
9.9

A strong feeling of wanting something that is not there

is the same strong want but stresses unlikely or unreachable object
appetence
vslonging
9.9

A strong desire to have or do something

places more stress on the object's improbability rather than appetite
nympholepsy
vslonging
  • Archaic
9.9

A strong, painful wish for something you cannot have

is similar about unreachable desire but is less extreme and less idealized

Antonyms

192 2.2

A pleasant feeling when you achieve something or your needs are met

26 2.1

A feeling of being happy and satisfied with your life

How Desirous

yearning
8 5.5
longing
69 4.2
desire
1.6
wish
474 1.0
want
27 1.0

Surface Forms

longing singular
longings plural

Morphology

longing = long (transparent) = long + ing

The noun is a straightforward nominalization of the verb 'long' with the productive suffix '-ing', yielding the meaning 'a strong desire'.

Etymology

Longing comes from the simple verb long, which originally meant 'to yearn' and is connected to the idea of something lasting a long time. Picture your heart 'stretching' toward someone or something over time, and you have a deep, lasting want — that's why longing means a strong desire for something you cannot have.