Question

longueur She tells me the book is extremely rewarding, in spite of some longueurs during which she occasionally drops off to sleep. longueur*

Accepted Answer

A dull and boring portion, as of a book. Longueur comes straight from French, a language based on Latin. When we borrow a foreign word, it's usually because English doesn't have a really good synonym, which is the case here. Longueur is used mostly when talking about books, but also when describing lectures and speeches. Like certain other French words, longueur tends to be used mainly by critics and professors—but lots of us who aren't either could find plenty of use for it too

word	longueur
definition	A dull and boring portion, as of a book.
eg_sentence	She tells me the book is extremely rewarding, in spite of some longueurs during which she occasionally drops off to sleep.
explanation	Longueur comes straight from French, a language based on Latin. When we borrow a foreign word, it's usually because English doesn't have a really good synonym, which is the case here. Longueur is used mostly when talking about books, but also when describing lectures and speeches. Like certain other French words, longueur tends to be used mainly by critics and professors—but lots of us who aren't either could find plenty of use for it too
IPA	longueur*

Longueur Dull Boring Portion Book Tells Extremely Rewarding