ache — OAT · Shobdo

ache

noun

1 an extremely bad stomach ache:

pain, dull pain, pang, twinge, throb;

gnawing, stabbing, sting, stinging, spasm, muscular spasm, cramp, convulsion;

smarting, soreness, tenderness, irritation, discomfort.

2 his absence was a constant nagging ache in her heart:

sorrow, sadness, misery, grief, anguish, suffering, pain, agony, torture, wretchedness, distress, hurt, affliction, woe, mourning.

▷antonyms joy.

3 his unrelenting ache for his homeland:

longing, yearning, craving, desire, pining, hankering, hunger, hungering, thirst, itch, burning;

informal yen.

▷antonyms disinclination.

verb

1 the box was so heavy that it made his shoulders ache:

hurt, be sore, be painful, be in pain, throb, pound, twinge;

smart, gnaw, burn, tingle, sting, be uncomfortable, be tender, give someone trouble;

informal play up, give someone gyp.

2 her heart ached unbearably:

grieve, sorrow, be sorrowful, be sad, be distressed, be in distress, be miserable, mourn, be mournful, lament, agonize, anguish, be in anguish, suffer, bleed;

eat one's heart out, weep and wail.

▷antonyms rejoice.

3 the whole world seemed to ache for summer's coming:

long for, yearn for, hunger for, thirst for, hanker for, hanker after, pine for, pine after, itch for, be desperate for, be unable to wait for;

crave, desire, covet;

informal have a yen for, yen for, be dying for;

archaic be athirst for, suspire for.