ache

English

Alternative forms

• ake (obsolete)

Etymology 1

From Middle English aken (v), and ache (noun), from Old English acan (v) (from Proto-Germanic *akanan (“to be bad, be evil”)) and æċe (noun) (from Proto-Germanic *akiz), both from Proto-Indo-European *ag- (“sin, crime”). Cognate with Low German aken, äken (“to hurt, ache”), North Frisian akelig, æklig (“terrible, miserable, sharp, intense”), West Frisian aaklik (“nasty, horrible, dismal, dreary”), Dutch akelig (“nasty, horrible”). The noun was originally pronounced as spelled--with a palatized ch sound (compare batch, from bake); and the verb was originally strong, conjugating for tense like take (eg. I ake, I oke, I have aken ), but gradually becoming weak during Middle English. Historically the verb was spelled ake, and the noun as ache (--Shak.). Confusion arose when Dr Johnson mistakingly cited derivation from Ancient Greek ἄχος (áchos, “pain”), due to the similarites in form and meaning.

Pronunciation

• • enPR: āk, IPA: /eɪk/, SAMPA: /eIk/

  • Audio (US)

    (file)

  • Rhymes: -eɪk

Verb

ache (third-person singular simple present aches, present participle aching, simple past oke (obsolete) or ached, past participle aken (obsolete) or ached)

1. (intransitive) To suffer pain; to be the source of, or be in, pain, especially continued dull pain; to be distressed.

   • Fie, how my bones ache! - Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet, II-v
   • The sins that in your conscience ache. —

Derived terms

• ache for

Translations

be distressed

Armenian: ցավել (hy) (c’avel) Bulgarian: боли (bg) Finnish: särkeä (fi), jomottaa (fi) Japanese: 痛む (itamu) Kurdish: Sorani: ئێش (ku) (aésh), یێش (ku) (yésh)

Portuguese: doer (pt) Russian: болеть (ru) (bolét') m. Spanish: doler (es) Swedish: värka (sv) (cause pain), ha ont (sv) (be in pain) Turkish: ağrımak (tr), acımak (tr)

Noun

ache (plural aches)

1. Continued dull pain, as distinguished from sudden twinges, or spasmodic pain.

   • Fill all thy bones with aches - Shakespeare, Tempest, I-ii

Derived terms

• aches and pains
• achy
• backache
• bellyache
• earache
• headache
• stomachache
• toothache

Translations

dull pain

Armenian: ցավ (hy) (c’av) Bulgarian: болка (bg) Dutch: pijn (nl) m. Finnish: särky (fi), kipu (fi) French: douleur (fr) f. German: Schmerz (de) m. Greek: άλγος [ˈalɣo̞s] n., πόνος [ˈpo̞no̞s] m. Indonesian: sakit, nyeri Interlingua: dolor Irish: tinneas (ga) m.

Italian: dolore (it) Japanese: 痛み (いたみ, itami) Kurdish: Sorani: ئێش (ku) (aésh), یێش (ku) (yésh), ژان (ku) (jan) Malay: sengal Portuguese: dor (pt) f. Russian: боль (ru) f. Spanish: dolor (es) m. Swedish: värk (sv) c. Turkish: ağrı (tr), acı (tr)

References

• Shorter Oxford English Dictionary, 5th edition.

Etymology 2

From Old French and modern French ache, from Latin apium (“parsley”), from Hebrew עכור (achor, “trouble, disturb”).

Pronunciation

• • enPR: āch, IPA: /eɪtʃ/, SAMPA: /eItS/
  • Rhymes: -eɪtʃ

Noun

ache (plural aches)

1. (obsolete) Parsley.

Etymology 3

Representing the pronunciation of the letter H.

Noun

ache (plural aches)

1. (rare) A variant spelling of aitch.

Anagrams

• Aceh
• each
• HACE

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Portuguese

Pronunciation

• Hyphenation: a‧che

Verb

ache

1. First-person singular (eu) present subjunctive of verb achar.
2. Third-person singular (ele, ela, also used with tu and você^?) present subjunctive of verb achar.
3. Third-person singular (você) affirmative imperative of verb achar.
4. Third-person singular (você) negative imperative of verb achar.