Dolor
/ˈdoʊ.lɔr/noun
A literary or poetic word meaning grief, sorrow, or pain.
Did you know?Dolor comes from Latin and is part of the same old emotional vocabulary that gave English words like doleful and condole, carrying the sense of grief as something almost physically felt.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*del-
“To hurt, grieve, or cause pain.”
Latin
Latin
dolor
“Pain, grief, anguish.”
Old French
Old French
dolor
“Pain, sorrow.”
Middle English
English
dolour
“Sorrow, grief, pain.”
Modern English
English
dolor
“A literary or medical term for pain or sorrow.”
Explore more surprising origins