ache
Continued dull pain, as distinguished from sudden twinges, or spasmodic pain.
Noun
- Continued dull pain, as distinguished from sudden twinges, or spasmodic pain.
- You may suffer a minor ache in your side.
- The aches and pains died down after taking an analgesic.
- Fill all thy bones with aches. - c. 1610, Shakespeare, The Tempest, Act I, Scene II:
- Emotional suffering causing discomfort and physical pain.
Origin
From Middle English aken (verb), and ache (noun), from Old English acan (verb) (from Proto-West Germanic *akan, from Proto-Germanic *akaną (“to ache”)) and æċe (noun) (from Proto-West Germanic *aki, from Proto-Germanic *akiz). Cognate with Saterland Frisian eeke, ääke (“to ache, fester”), Low German aken, achen, äken (“to hurt, ache”), German Low German Eek (“inflammation”), North Frisian akelig, æklig (“terrible, miserable, sharp, intense”), West Frisian aaklik (“nasty, horrible, dismal, dreary”), Dutch akelig (“nasty, horrible”). The verb was originally strong, conjugating for tense like take (e.g. I ake, I oke, I have aken), but gradually became weak during Middle English; the noun was originally pronounced as /eɪt͡ʃ/ as spelled (compare breach, from break). Historically the verb was spelled ake, and the noun ache (even after the form /eɪk/ started to become common for the noun;...
Forms
Related
Derived
achage acheful acheless achelike acher aches and pains achesome achy assache backache ballache ball ache bellyache boneache dickache earache eyeache faceache face-ache fingerache headache heartache hot ache knee ache
Noun historical, obsolete
- Parsley.
Origin
From Middle English ache, from Old French ache, from Latin apium (“celery”). Reinforced by modern French ache.
Forms
Derived
Noun alt of, rare
- Rare spelling of aitch.
Origin
Representing the pronunciation of the letter H.
Forms
Verb
- To suffer pain; to be the source of, or be in, pain, especially continued dull pain; to be distressed.
- My feet were aching for days after the marathon.
- Every muscle in his body ached.
- By'r lakin, I can goe no further, Sir, / My old bones akes:^([sic]) here's a maze trod indeede / Through fourth rights, & Meanders: / by your patience, I needes muſt reſt me. - 1610–1611 (date written), William...
Synonyms: hurt suffer ache agonize anguish pain passion thole throe wark wring
- To cause someone or something to suffer pain.
Synonyms: afflict torment ache aggrieve agonize anguish dere excruciate hurt irritate pang pine rack throe torture wring