Longers

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Individuals or things characterized by great length or duration ; more extended in time or space compared to others ; entities possessing increased measurement or extent
2. Persons or objects distinguished by increased span or distance ; exhibiting prolonged length or longevity relative to counterparts ; items or beings with greater size or temporality
3. Agents or items having augmented linear dimension or temporal persistence ; exceeding others in extent or continuance ; examples of those with superior reach or longevity

Etymology: "Longers" is simply the plural of "longer," the comparative of "long." Its base, "long," descends from a Proto-Germanic root *langaz, and the comparative was formed by adding the suffix "-er" to it, a pattern that goes back to Old English "lengra." Early English forms of the comparative show the word's Germanic roots clearly, and it has close relatives across the North Sea and Baltic languages, such as German "länger" and Swedish "längre." The noun use of "longers" is plainly a later development: a comparative adjective, pluralised and treated as a noun to mean things or people that are more extended than others. The word is therefore an inherited Germanic formation rather than a borrowing, and its history is essentially the history of "long" itself.

Synonyms: longer ones

Antonyms: shorters