yearning

[ yur-ning ]

noun

1. deep longing, especially when accompanied by tenderness or sadness:

   a widower's yearning for his wife.

2. an instance of such longing.

ˈyearning

/ ˈjɜːnɪŋ /

noun

1. an intense or overpowering longing, desire, or need; craving

Derived Forms

• ˈyearningly, adverb

Other Words From

• yearning·ly adverb
• un·yearning adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of yearning¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English gierninge; equivalent to yearn + -ing ¹

Synonym Study

See desire.

Example Sentences

“Noid” was dense and menacing, Tyler’s flow somewhere between a growl and a yowl; “Darling, I” was light and whimsical but almost painfully yearning too.

From Los Angeles Times

Per Wayne State School of Law professor Khaled A. Beydoun, “Money drives the yearning for a white contender who can capture the imagination of new audiences and the maximum dollars only whiteness can bring.”

From Salon

If it weren't for getting three Supreme Court justices, the damage he did would be relatively small compared to his destructive yearnings.

From Salon

Jimmy Carter once said, “We become not a melting pot but a beautiful mosaic. Different people, different beliefs, different yearnings, different hopes, different dreams.”

From Los Angeles Times

Zoe says before her transition, Emilia is an "unredeemable character" but audiences have a "yearning for her redemption".

From BBC

Related Words

• ambition
• appetite
• aspiration
• craving
• eagerness
• fascination
• hankering
• hunger
• longing
• passion
• thirst