I. ache 1 /eɪk/ BrE AmE verb [intransitive]
[ Language: Old English ; Origin: acan ]
1 . if part of your body aches, you feel a continuous, but not very sharp pain there SYN hurt :
His feet were aching from standing so long.
REGISTER
In everyday English, people usually say they have a headache , have (a) backache , have (a) stomach ache , or have (a) toothache rather than saying that their head, back, etc aches :
▪ My head aches terribly. ➔ I have a terrible headache.
2 . to want to do or have something very much
ache for
I’m aching for sleep.
ache to do something
He ached to reach out and hold her close.
3 . to have a strong unhappy feeling
ache with
Sarah ached with sadness that her brother was so ill.
Tim’s heart was aching for her.
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THESAURUS
■ when part of your body feels painful
▪ hurt if part of your body hurts, it feels painful:
My chest hurts when I cough.
▪ ache to hurt with a continuous pain:
I’d been walking all day and my legs were really aching.
▪ throb to feel a bad pain that comes and goes again in a regular and continuous way:
Lou had a terrible headache and his whole head seemed to be throbbing.
▪ sting to feel a sharp pain, or to make someone feel this, especially in your eyes, throat, or skin:
My throat stings every time I swallow.
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This injection may sting a little.
▪ smart to hurt with a sudden sharp pain – used especially about your eyes, or your skin where something has hit you:
Her eyes were smarting from the thick smoke.
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Jackson’s face was still smarting from the punch.
▪ burn to feel very hot and painful or uncomfortable:
Be careful because this chemical will make your skin burn.
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His eyes were burning because of the gas.
▪ pinch if something you are wearing pinches you, it is too tight and presses painfully on your skin:
The shirt was a bit too small and it was pinching my neck.
▪ something is killing me spoken informal used when something feels very painful:
My legs are killing me.
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These shoes are killing me.
▪ a bad back/leg/arm etc if you have a bad back/leg/arm etc, it feels painful:
He’s off work with a bad back.
II. ache 2 BrE AmE noun [countable]
1 . a continuous pain that is not sharp or very strong:
a stomach ache
A dull ache throbbed at the back of David’s head.
aches and pains (=slight feelings of pain that are not considered to be serious)
Apart from the usual aches and pains, she felt all right.
2 . a strong, mostly unhappy, feeling:
the ache of his loneliness
—achy adjective :
I’m feeling tired and achy.
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THESAURUS
▪ pain noun [uncountable and countable] the feeling when part of your body hurts:
A broken leg can cause a lot of pain.
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He felt a sharp pain in his chest.
▪ ache noun [uncountable and countable] a continuous pain, especially one that is not very bad. Most commonly used in compounds such as headache , toothache , and backache :
I felt an ache in my back after decorating all day.
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Driving gives me a headache.
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I’ve got stomach ache.
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Do you have earache?
▪ twinge noun [countable] a sudden slight pain that comes and then disappears quickly:
When I bent down I felt a twinge in my back.
▪ discomfort noun [uncountable] formal an uncomfortable feeling in your body, or a slight pain:
The procedure takes five minutes and only causes slight discomfort.
▪ agony noun [uncountable] a feeling of great pain, or a situation in which you feel a lot of pain:
the agony of childbirth
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I was in agony by the time I got to the hospital.
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It was agony (=very painful) getting up out of bed.
▪ suffering noun [uncountable] continuous physical or mental pain, which makes someone very unhappy:
I just wanted someone to put an end to my suffering.
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the suffering of the earthquake victims