ache
English
Alternative forms
Etymology 1
From Middle English aken (verb), and ache (noun), from Old English acan (verb) (from Proto-Germanic *akaną (“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, achen, äken (“to hurt, to 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); 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. Historically the verb was spelled ake, and the noun ache. The verb came to be spelled like the noun when lexicographist Samuel Johnson mistakenly assumed that it derived from Ancient Greek ἄχος (ákhos, “pain”) due to the similarity in form and meaning of the two words.
Pronunciation
Verb
ache (third-person singular simple present aches, present participle aching, simple past ached or (obsolete) oke, past participle ached or (obsolete) aken)
- (intransitive) To suffer pain; to be the source of, or be in, pain, especially continued dull pain; to be distressed.
- c. 1593 Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet, Act II, Scene V:
- Fie, how my bones ache!
- 1918, W. B. Maxwell, chapter 7, in The Mirror and the Lamp:
- The turmoil went on—no rest, no peace. […] It was nearly eleven o'clock now, and he strolled out again. In the little fair created by the costers' barrows the evening only seemed beginning; and the naphtha flares made one's eyes ache, the men's voices grated harshly, and the girls' faces saddened one.
- c. 1593 Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet, Act II, Scene V:
- (transitive, literary, rare) To cause someone or something to suffer pain.
Derived terms
Translations
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Noun
ache (plural aches)
- Continued dull pain, as distinguished from sudden twinges, or spasmodic pain.
- c. 1610 Shakespeare, The Tempest, Act I, Scene II:
- Fill all thy bones with aches.
- c. 1610 Shakespeare, The Tempest, Act I, Scene II:
Derived terms
Translations
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See also
References
- Shorter Oxford English Dictionary, 5th edition.
Etymology 2
From Middle English ache, from Old French ache, from Latin apium (“celery”). Reinforced by modern French ache.
Pronunciation
Noun
ache (plural aches)
Derived terms
Etymology 3
Representing the pronunciation of the letter H.
Noun
ache (plural aches)
- Rare spelling of aitch.
Anagrams
French
Pronunciation
Etymology 1
From Latin apia, plural of apium (“celery”).
Noun
ache f (plural aches)
- celery (plant)
Etymology 2
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)
Noun
ache m (plural aches)
- aitch, The name of the Latin-script letter H/h.
Middle English
Etymology 1
From Old English eċe, ace, æċe, from Proto-Germanic *akiz. Some forms are remodelled on aken.
Alternative forms
Pronunciation
Noun
ache (plural aches)
- Aching; long-lasting hurting or injury.
Related terms
Descendants
References
- “āche (n.(1))”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2018-06-12.
Etymology 2
From Old French ache, from Latin apium.
Pronunciation
Noun
ache (plural aches)
- A plant of the genus Apium, especially celery.
Descendants
- English: ache
References
- “āche (n.(2))”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2018-06-12.
Norman
Etymology
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)
Noun
ache f (uncountable)
- (Jersey) wild celery
- Synonym: céléri sauvage
Portuguese
Pronunciation
- Hyphenation: a‧che
Verb
ache
- English terms inherited from Middle English
- English terms derived from Middle English
- English terms inherited from Old English
- English terms derived from Old English
- English terms inherited from Proto-Germanic
- English terms derived from Proto-Germanic
- English terms derived from Proto-Indo-European
- English 1-syllable words
- English terms with IPA pronunciation
- English terms with audio links
- Rhymes:English/eɪk
- English lemmas
- English verbs
- English intransitive verbs
- English terms with quotations
- English transitive verbs
- English literary terms
- English terms with rare senses
- English nouns
- English countable nouns
- English terms derived from Old French
- English terms derived from Latin
- Rhymes:English/eɪt͡ʃ
- English terms with obsolete senses
- English rare forms
- English heteronyms
- English terms borrowed from French
- English terms borrowed from Old French
- en:Apieae tribe plants
- en:Pain
- French 1-syllable words
- French terms with IPA pronunciation
- Rhymes:French/aʃ
- French terms with homophones
- French terms derived from Latin
- French lemmas
- French nouns
- French countable nouns
- French feminine nouns
- French masculine nouns
- fr:Latin letter names
- Middle English terms inherited from Old English
- Middle English terms derived from Old English
- Middle English terms inherited from Proto-Germanic
- Middle English terms derived from Proto-Germanic
- Middle English terms with IPA pronunciation
- Middle English lemmas
- Middle English nouns
- Middle English terms borrowed from Old French
- Middle English terms derived from Old French
- Middle English terms derived from Latin
- enm:Pain
- enm:Plants
- enm:Vegetables
- Norman lemmas
- Norman nouns
- Norman feminine nouns
- Jersey Norman
- nrf:Plants
- Portuguese non-lemma forms
- Portuguese verb forms