# longing

/ˈɫɔŋɪŋ/ (US) · /lˈɒŋɪŋ/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/longing
Updated: 2026-06-20

## Senses

### 1. deep desire

noun · CEFR B2

a strong, often sad feeling of wanting something or someone you cannot have right now.

For teachers: an intense, persistent, and often melancholic desire for something or someone, typically characterized by a sense of absence or distance.

- After living in the city for years, he felt a deep longing for the quiet countryside.
- Her poetry often explores the bittersweet longing for a childhood home that no longer exists in the physical world.

Usage: Commonly follows the pattern 'longing for [something]' or 'longing to [do something].'

### 2. finance

noun · CEFR C2 · Technical

buying an investment because you expect its price to go up.

For teachers: the act of purchasing a financial instrument with the expectation that its market value will appreciate. Usually functions as a gerund or part of a compound.

- The trader's longing of the tech stock proved profitable when the prices rose.
- The fund's strategy involved the aggressive longing of emerging market currencies in anticipation of a regional economic recovery.

Usage: In modern finance, 'going long' is more common as a verbal phrase, but 'longing' appears in technical trading contexts.

## Examples

- She felt a deep longing for her home country.
- After years of living in the city, he felt a sudden longing for the quiet life of the countryside.
- The poet captures a sense of existential longing, describing a search for meaning that remains perpetually out of reach despite his worldly successes.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.