ache
Americanverb (used without object)
-
aches,
present (3rd person singular)
-
ached,
past participle, past
-
aching
present participle
-
to have or suffer a continuous, dull pain.
His whole body ached.
- Synonyms:
- hurt
-
to feel great sympathy, pity, or the like.
Her heart ached for the starving animals.
-
to feel eager; yearn; long.
She ached to be the champion. He's just aching to get even.
noun
-
aches
plural
verb
-
to feel, suffer, or be the source of a continuous dull pain
-
to suffer mental anguish
noun
Synonym Usage
See pain.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
achesimple
-
achessimple
-
have achedperfect
-
has achedperfect
-
am achingprogressive
-
are achingprogressive
-
is achingprogressive
-
have been achingperfect progressive
-
has been achingperfect progressive
Past
-
achedsimple
-
had achedperfect
-
was achingprogressive
-
were achingprogressive
-
had been achingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of ache
before 900; (v.) Middle English aken, Old English acan; perhaps metaphoric use of earlier unattested sense “drive, impel” (compare Old Norse aka, cognate with Latin agere, Greek ágein ); (noun) derivative of the v.
Explanation
An ache is a dull, lingering pain. An ache in your calves after your morning jog might mean you didn't stretch enough before you started running. You might describe your discomfort as a head ache or a stomach ache — in either case, there's a throbbing or continuous pain. A non-physical hurt can also be called an ache, and you can use the word as a verb in either case: "It feels like my heart will ache forever, since my sweet cat died." The Old English root is acan, "to suffer pain," possibly from an imitative Proto-Indo-European word that sounds like a groan.
Vocabulary lists containing ache
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
“It’s about the ache of growing up … and that we get to grow up at all,” Bareilles said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 6, 2026
"It's tough work... the hardest part is carrying the seaweed back. It's very heavy and your shoulders ache afterwards."
From Barron's ● Jun. 30, 2026
Good TV is the product of many hands working harmoniously to merge visuals, writing and performance into stories that breathe, laugh and ache along with you.
From Salon ● Jun. 20, 2026
Mr. Barragán, a reporter and researcher for the New York Times based in Madrid, is good on the small ache that makes the whole enterprise possible.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 14, 2026
Satisfied, he started back down the hall, trying to ignore the growing ache in his shoulder.
From "Half Upon a Time" by James Riley
"Even inside the house, the smoke gets in. Honestly, since the haze, my body aches, as if I've been beaten up. The immune system is down. I get coughs and colds easily."
From Barron's ● Oct. 20, 2026
That is, until a few hours later when those uncomfortable muscle aches start setting in.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 14, 2026
The daughter of another medbed believer recalled her mother’s words: We won’t have those aches and pains anymore; your dad’s heart will be better.
From Slate ● Sep. 22, 2026
However, around one in five people who are infected develop a fever and moderate symptoms such as body aches, vomiting and diarrhea.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026
"My children," she murmurs, and the sound of it aches.
From "How It Went Down" by Kekla Magoon
She wrote that her heart ached most looking at a poster her three children made when they were young.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026
Before Edward and Bella took over the world, “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” viewers ached for David Boreanaz’s Angel and James Marsters’ Spike, centuries-old bros who fall for a very special high school blonde.
From Salon ● Jun. 13, 2026
"My heart ached, and I could only pray: 'God, please don't let that happen.'"
From BBC ● Jan. 14, 2025
But then Ford thinks about the three years he lost working his way back from injury and how much he ached to just play football then, and, for however long, those feelings melt away.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 31, 2024
Had Jonn's heart been aching for him then as his ached for Jonn now?
From "Rowan of Rin" by Emily Rodda
Some go their whole lives searching for it, aching to find where they belong, or what gives them purpose.
From Salon ● Oct. 12, 2026
In a world of instant gratification, it teaches perseverance through early practices and aching muscles.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 3, 2026
As the Aedes aegypti mosquito expanded its range across more of the Americas, it brought with it the delirium, jaundice, and aching joints of yellow fever.
From Slate ● Aug. 4, 2026
The morning after losing to Federer, an aching Willis limped to the shower at 4:30am to get ready for an interview on ITV's Good Morning Britain.
From BBC ● Jul. 1, 2026
Returning to camp we could barely lift our swollen and aching legs.
From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom
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