long
long Lexical Profile
long Game Scores & Validity
• adjective
Measuring a great distance from end to end; having considerable linear extent in space.
"They walked along a long, winding path through the dense forest."
Lasting or taking a great amount of time; prolonged in duration.
"After a long delay at the airport, the passengers finally boarded the plane."
Having a specified length, distance, or duration.
"The wooden dining table is exactly two meters long."
In finance, holding a security or commodity in expectation that its market value will rise.
"The investment firm remained long on technology stocks throughout the fourth quarter."
In phonetics, designating a vowel sound of relatively greater duration or tenseness, or in English, one that sounds like the name of the letter itself.
"The word 'bite' contains a long vowel sound, whereas 'bit' has a short vowel."
• adverb
For a great duration or extent of time.
"Did you have to wait long for the train to arrive?"
At a distant point in time prior to or following a specified event.
"She had finished the assignment long before the official deadline."
Throughout the entire duration of a specified period of time.
"The musicians rehearsed all afternoon long to prepare for the concert."
• noun
A considerable period of time; a long duration.
"The repairs to the historic bridge will not take long to complete."
In finance, a trader or investor who holds a long position in a security or commodity market.
"Rising interest rates forced many longs to liquidate their holdings before the market closed."
In phonetics and prosody, a long vowel sound or a long syllable in metrical verse.
"Classical Latin meter relies on regular patterns of longs and shorts rather than stressed syllables."
• verb
To have a strong, persistent, or wistful desire for something (usually followed by 'for' or an infinitive).
"After months of working in the bustling city, she longed for the quiet solitude of the countryside."
• Rhymes for long
Word Origin & Etymology
From Old English lang ('having great linear extent'), from Proto-Germanic *langaz, ultimately from the Proto-Indo-European root *dlonghos- ('long'), making it a direct cognate with Latin longus. The verb meaning 'to yearn' comes from Old English langian, literally 'to seem long' or 'to reach out toward.'