ache

[ eyk ]

verb (used without object)

, ached, ach·ing.

1. to have or suffer a continuous, dull pain:

   His whole body ached.

   Synonyms: hurt

2. to feel great sympathy, pity, or the like:

   Her heart ached for the starving animals.

3. to feel eager; yearn; long:

   She ached to be the champion. He's just aching to get even.

noun

1. a continuous, dull pain (in contrast to a sharp, sudden, or sporadic pain).

ache

/ eɪk /

verb

1. to feel, suffer, or be the source of a continuous dull pain
2. to suffer mental anguish

noun

1. a continuous dull pain

Derived Forms

• ˈaching, adjective
• ˈachingly, adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of ache¹

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.

Word History and Origins

Origin of ache¹

Old English ācan (vb), æce (n), Middle English aken (vb), ache (n). Compare bake , batch

Synonym Study

See pain.

Example Sentences

If it’s too much to ask of Arnold that her bid for heightened naturalism make a ton of sense, “Bird” at least maintains a heartbeat of ache and affection for youth in all its rudeness, revealing a filmmaker who isn’t afraid of losing her claws if she traffics in the thing with feathers.

From Los Angeles Times

"Whenever we'd go, they'd have the cream ones in front of her for her to drink. I kept saying these are going to make her sick and give her a stomach ache," Rachael said.

From BBC

"It feels like a wet towel and you're wringing it in your stomach and pain shoots down your legs and it hurts my back, just like an overall ache," she said.

From BBC

What’s clear is that Alejandro has the ache in his voice that’s reminiscent of forlorn romantics like Pepe Aguilar and the timbre of Miguel.

From Los Angeles Times

If one needs a practical takeaway from this ache of a movie, it’s this: Make things official.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• anguish
• misery
• pang
• soreness
• spasm
• twinge