Anguish
/ˈæŋ.ɡwɪʃ/noun
Severe mental or physical suffering.
Did you know?The Old French word for anguish was 'angoisse,' linked to the Latin 'angustia,' meaning 'narrowness,' evoking the feeling of being trapped in suffering.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*angʰ-
“to choke, to press tightly”
Latin
Latin
angustia
“narrowness, tightness, distress”
Old French
Old French
angoisse
“pain, distress, anguish”
Middle English
Middle English
anguishe
“pain, torment, mental suffering”
Modern English
English
anguish
“extreme suffering, both physical and mental”