long
Language: English
Part of speech: adj
Pronunciation: ipa: /lɒŋ/
ipa: /lɔːŋ/
note: Black Country
enpr: lo͝oŋg
ipa: /lʊŋɡ/
note: Black Country
ipa: /læŋ/
enpr: lông
ipa: /lɔŋ/
enpr: läng
ipa: /lɑŋ/
rhymes: -ɒŋ
Forms: form: longer
form: more long
form: longest
form: most long
form: lang
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”).
Cognate with Scots lang (“long”), North Frisian lung, lüng (“long”), Saterland Frisian loang (“long”), West Frisian lang (“long”), Cimbrian lång (“long”), Dutch, German and Low German lang, 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”), Portuguese longo (“long”), Spanish luengo (“long”), French long, Italian lungo, Latin longus (“long”), Russian дли́нный (dlínnyj), до́лго (dólgo), Sanskrit दीर्घ (dīrgha, “long”).
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.
Senses: examples: text: I need a long piece of wood.
text: It’s a long way from the Earth to the Moon.
text: How long was your newborn baby?
text: 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.
ref: 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:
text: 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.
ref: 1963, Margery Allingham, chapter 17, in The China Governess: A Mystery, London: Chatto & Windus, →OCLC:
glosses: Having much distance in space from one end to the other.
examples: text: This table is long but not very high.
glosses: Having much distance in space from one end to the other.
Specifically, having much distance in a horizontal dimension (see also Usage Notes below).
examples: text: Smith hoofs a long ball up to Jones.
glosses: Having much distance in space from one end to the other.
Travelling a great distance.
examples: text: My ex was very strong but not very long.
glosses: Having much distance in space from one end to the other.
Having a long penis.
examples: text: The plane touched down long and overran the end of the runway.
text: 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.
ref: 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:
glosses: Travelling or extending too great a distance in space.
Passing or landing ahead of or beyond the intended target or location.
qualifier: landing aircraft
raw_tags: of weapons fire
examples: text: That forehand was long. It landed two feet beyond the baseline.
text: The pass was long and was gathered by the opposing goalkeeper.
topics: hobbies
lifestyle
sports
glosses: Travelling or extending too great a distance in space.
Going beyond the intended target.
raw_tags: of a ball or shot
examples: text: His speech was long and dull.
text: The pyramids of Egypt have been around for a long time.
text: I took a long look at the house, knowing it was for the last time.
text: 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.
ref: 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:
glosses: Having great duration.
examples: text: It took us three long weeks to clear the stones from the field.
text: It'll be a long journey home for the travelling supporters after that 5-0 defeat.
text: 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.
ref: [1877], Anna Sewell, “A Strike for Liberty”, in Black Beauty: […], London: Jarrold and Sons, […], →OCLC, part II, page 109:
glosses: Seeming to last a lot of time, due to being boring, tedious, tiring, irksome, etc.
examples: text: 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.
ref: 1908, W[illiam] B[lair] M[orton] Ferguson, chapter I, in Zollenstein, New York, N.Y.: D. Appleton & Company, →OCLC:
text: Bless ’em all, bless ’em all, the long, the short and the tall.
ref: 1940, Fred Godfrey, “Bless 'Em All”performed by George Formby:
glosses: Not short; tall.
examples: text: I’m long in DuPont.
text: I have a long position in DuPont.
topics: business
finance
antonyms: short
glosses: Possessing or owning stocks, bonds, commodities, or other financial instruments with the aim of benefiting from an expected rise in their value.
topics: ball-games
cricket
games
hobbies
lifestyle
sports
glosses: Of a fielding position, close to the boundary (or closer to the boundary than the equivalent short position).
topics: gambling
games
glosses: Of betting odds, offering a very large return for a small wager.
examples: text: 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.
ref: 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:
glosses: Occurring or coming after an extended interval; distant in time; far away.
examples: text: I’m talkin’ ’bout… I’m talkin’ ’bout that long money.
ref: 2011 December 18, “Ballin' Uncontrollably” (track 7), in King Mather's LP, performed by Eminem:
text: Me and broke niggas, we don’t get along (Nah). Hair long (Long), money long (Yeah).
ref: 2012 November 8, “I'm Different” (track 6), in Based on a T.R.U. Story, performed by 2 Chainz:
text: Never lie, money longer than Pinnochio.
ref: 2013 June 12, “Shoulda Woulda” (track 16), in Project Baby, performed by Kodak Black:
text: Rent-a-cars we road run, money longer than train smoke.
ref: 2013 October 7, “No Regrets” (track 7), in My Name Is My Name, performed by Pusha T:
text: Money so long, it’s offensive.
ref: 2016 November 24, “Upgrade You”performed by Kash Doll:
text: I got some rope in the trunk, tape and one shovel
Long money, talkin’ billions, nigga, and I want several
ref: 2021 September 24, “Hell on Earth, Pt. 2”, in Hitler Wears Hermes 8: Side B, performed by Westside Gunn:
qualifier: African-American Vernacular
glosses: In great supply; abundant.
raw_tags: of money
examples: text: 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).
ref: 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:
text: INCHEZ: Man this is long! We’ve been in here for time!
ref: 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):
synonyms: boring
late
slow
time-consuming
glosses: Clipping of taking a long time.
examples: text: [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.
ref: 2015 September 18, “Brand New” (track 6), in Don't Panic, performed by Smoke Boys:
text: 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!
ref: 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):
text: 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.
ref: 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):
text: 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 long
ref: 2023 February 18, Simba-xiv, “Most Guys Know That They're^([sic]) Friends Aren't Shit With Women”, in Reddit (subreddit: BlackPeopleTwitter):
glosses: stupid; annoying; bullshit
examples: text: JAMIE: Yo, if I see you man round here again, it is long for you!
ref: 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):
synonyms: the end
curtains
glosses: serious; deadly.
glosses: Measuring 8½ in × 13 in.
raw_tags: of paper or document layouts
glosses: Measuring 8½ in × 14 in.
raw_tags: of paper or document layouts
Synonyms: sense: having much distance from one point to another
english: vertically downwards
translation: vertically downwards
word: deep
sense: having much distance from one point to another
word: extended
sense: having much distance from one point to another
english: vertically upwards
translation: vertically upwards
word: high
sense: having much distance from one point to another
word: lengthy
sense: having much distance from one point to another
word: tall
sense: having great duration
word: extended
sense: having great duration
word: lengthy
sense: having great duration
word: prolonged
word: lengthful
word: lengthsome
word: long
word: longsome
word: prolix
Hypernyms: word: large
Hyponyms: sense: Hyponyms of long (long duration)
word: daylong
sense: Hyponyms of long (long duration)
word: day-long
sense: Hyponyms of long (long duration)
word: days-long
sense: Hyponyms of long (long duration)
word: dayslong
sense: Hyponyms of long (long duration)
word: decade-long
sense: Hyponyms of long (long duration)
word: decadelong
sense: Hyponyms of long (long duration)
word: decades-long
sense: Hyponyms of long (long duration)
word: fortnight-long
sense: Hyponyms of long (long duration)
word: hour-long
sense: Hyponyms of long (long duration)
word: hours-long
sense: Hyponyms of long (long duration)
word: long-standing
sense: Hyponyms of long (long duration)
word: month-long
sense: Hyponyms of long (long duration)
word: months-long
sense: Hyponyms of long (long duration)
word: weeklong
sense: Hyponyms of long (long duration)
word: week-long
sense: Hyponyms of long (long duration)
word: weeks-long
sense: Hyponyms of long (long duration)
word: yard-long
sense: Hyponyms of long (long duration)
word: yearlong
sense: Hyponyms of long (long duration)
word: year-long
sense: Hyponyms of long (long duration)
word: yearslong
sense: Hyponyms of long (long duration)
word: years-long
word: deep
word: tall
word: elongated
word: extended
Derived terms: 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
come a long way
daddy longlegs
draw a long bow
draw the long bow
edgelong
erelong
extralong
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
Lombard
long a
Long-a-Coming
long-acting
long-acuminate
longage
long-ago
long ago
long and short stitch
long arm
longarm
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-billed
long bit
long black
long block
longboard
longboat
longboi
Longbone
long bone
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
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 figure
long filename
long file name
longfin
long finger
long-fingered frog
long firm
long-focus lens
long-footed potoroo
Longford
long-form
longform
long-furred
long game
long ghost
longgrass
long-grasser
long grasser
long gray line
long green
long gross
long gun
longhair
long hair
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 beetle
long-horned grasshopper
long hour
longhouse
long house
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-john
long john
long johns
long-johns
long jump
long-jumper
Long Key
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
long list
longlist
long-lived
longliver
long-living
long-locked
long-lost
longly
Long Man
Long Marston
Long Marton
long measure
Long Melford
long memory
long meter
longminded
long-minded
long mode
longneck
long-neck
long-necked
longnecked
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 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
long-sleeved
longsleeved
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
longsuffering
long-suffering
long suit
Long Sutton
long sweetening
longsword
longtail
long tail
long-tail boat
long-tail Covid
long-tailed
long-tailed hawk
long-tailed paradise whydah
long-tailed planigale
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
long view
Longview
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
semilong
semi-long
short accounts make long friends
short reckonings make long friends
sidelong
Sir David's long-beaked echidna
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
ultralong
very-long-baseline interferometry
very-long-chain
waistlong
yard-long bean
you're a long time dead
Related terms: broad
wide