Meaning & use

pain

noun·Everyday

An unpleasant physical sensation caused by illness or injury, or emotional suffering caused by a difficult situation.

See it in a sentence

She felt a sharp pain in her ankle after twisting it on the stairs.

Losing his childhood home caused him deep pain that lasted for years.

A note on using this word

Pain is usually uncountable for general suffering but countable for a specific sensation, as in 'a pain in my back'.

Words with a similar meaning

Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.

Words with an opposite meaning

comfortpleasure

Another way to use it

2. noun

An annoying or troublesome person or situation (informal).

Fixing the printer every week has become a real pain.

Make it your own

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