Yearning — meaning, pronunciation & more

Definition

prolonged unfulfilled desire or need

desire strongly or persistently

Pronunciation

🇺🇸American English

/jˈɜːnɪŋ/

🇬🇧British English

/jˈɜːnɪŋ/

🇮🇳Indian English

/jˈɜːnɪŋ/

2 syllables Say it as /jˈɜːnɪŋ/.

Examples

She ached for a cigarette
I am pining for my lover

Synonyms & Antonyms

Synonyms

yen hanker longing long hungriness ache languish pine yearn

Parts of Speech

noun	prolonged unfulfilled desire or need
verb	desire strongly or persistently
verb	have a desire for something or someone who is not present “She ached for a cigarette”
verb	have affection for; feel tenderness for

Word Forms

long	verb	desire strongly or persistently
yearn	verb	have a desire for something or someone who is not present
hungry	adjective	(usually followed by `for') extremely desirous
hankering	noun	a yearning for something or to do something
longer	noun	a person with a strong desire for something
longing	noun	prolonged unfulfilled desire or need
yearner	noun	a person with a strong desire for something
yearning	noun	prolonged unfulfilled desire or need
yen	noun	a yearning for something or to do something
pining	noun	a feeling of deep longing

Around the World

Europe

🇩🇪German

Sehnsucht

anhaltender unerfüllter Wunsch oder Bedarf

🇫🇷French

aspiration

désir ou besoin non satisfait prolongé

🇪🇸Spanish

anhelo

deseo o necesidad prolongada e insatisfecha

🇮🇹Italian

desiderio

desiderio o bisogno prolungato e insoddisfatto

🇳🇱Dutch

verlangen

langdurig onvervuld verlangen of behoefte

🇵🇹Portuguese

anseio

desejo ou necessidade prolongada e insatisfeita

🇷🇺Russian

тоска

длительное неудовлетворенное желание или потребность

India

🇮🇳Hindi

तड़प

लंबे समय तक अधूरी इच्छा या आवश्यकता

🇧🇩Bengali

আকুলতা

দীর্ঘায়িত অপূর্ণ ইচ্ছা বা প্রয়োজন

🇮🇳Tamil

ஏங்குகிறது

நீண்ட காலமாக நிறைவேறாத ஆசை அல்லது தேவை

🇮🇳Telugu

ఆత్రుత

సుదీర్ఘమైన నెరవేరని కోరిక లేదా అవసరం

🇮🇳Marathi

तळमळ

दीर्घकाळ अपूर्ण इच्छा किंवा गरज

🇮🇳Gujarati

ઝંખના

લાંબા સમય સુધી અપૂર્ણ ઇચ્છા અથવા જરૂરિયાત

🇮🇳Kannada

ಹಂಬಲಿಸುತ್ತಿದೆ

ದೀರ್ಘಕಾಲದ ಅತೃಪ್ತ ಬಯಕೆ ಅಥವಾ ಅಗತ್ಯ

🇮🇳Malayalam

കൊതിക്കുന്നു

നീണ്ട പൂർത്തീകരിക്കാത്ത ആഗ്രഹം അല്ലെങ്കിൽ ആവശ്യം

🇮🇳Punjabi

ਤਰਸ

ਲੰਬੇ ਸਮੇਂ ਤੋਂ ਅਧੂਰੀ ਇੱਛਾ ਜਾਂ ਜ਼ਰੂਰਤ

🇵🇰Urdu

تڑپ

طویل ادھوری خواہش یا ضرورت

East & Southeast Asia

🇨🇳Chinese

向往

长期未满足的愿望或需要

🇯🇵Japanese

憧れ

長期間にわたって満たされない願望や必要性

🇰🇷Korean

그리움

오랫동안 충족되지 않은 욕구나 욕구

🇻🇳Vietnamese

khao khát

mong muốn hoặc nhu cầu không được thỏa mãn kéo dài

🇹🇭Thai

ความปรารถนา

ความปรารถนาหรือความต้องการที่ไม่บรรลุผลเป็นเวลานาน

🇮🇩Indonesian

kerinduan

keinginan atau kebutuhan yang tidak terpenuhi dalam waktu lama

🇵🇭Filipino

pananabik

matagal na hindi natutupad na pagnanais o pangangailangan

🇲🇾Malay

kerinduan

keinginan atau keperluan yang tidak terpenuhi berpanjangan

Middle East

🇸🇦Arabic

توق

رغبة أو حاجة طويلة لم تتحقق

🇮🇷Persian

اشتیاق

خواسته یا نیاز برآورده نشده طولانی مدت

🇹🇷Turkish

hasret

uzun süre karşılanmayan arzu veya ihtiyaç

🇮🇱Hebrew

גַעגוּעִים

רצון או צורך ממושכים שלא מומשו

Test Yourself1 / 3

What is the primary definition of the word 'yearning'?

The primary meaning of 'yearning' is 'prolonged unfulfilled desire or need'.

Which of the following sentences uses the word 'yearning' in a grammatically correct way?

Using 'yearning' in a noun/adjective form makes the first sentence correct.

In which domain is the word 'yearning' most likely to appear as standard vocabulary?

'yearning' is a standard word used primarily in general literature and formal communications.

Community Poll1 / 6

How often do you encounter the word 'yearning' in your daily reading?

Very Often

Occasionally

Rarely

Never

Do you find 'yearning' easy to spell?

Yes, very easy

Somewhat easy

A bit confusing

Extremely hard

In your opinion, does the word 'yearning' have a positive, neutral, or gloomy tone?

Positive

Neutral

Gloomy

Vibrant

Which age group is most likely to use 'yearning' in regular conversations?

Kids (3-12)

Teens (13-19)

Adults (20-60)

Seniors (60+)

How likely are you to use 'yearning' in a professional email?

Very likely

Somewhat likely

Not very likely

Never

Would you classify 'yearning' as formal, casual, or slang?

Formal

Casual

Slang

Archaic

Pick an option to see how others voted