noun
-
the pain, misery, or loss experienced by a person who suffers
-
the state or an instance of enduring pain, etc
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of suffering
First recorded in 1350–1400; suffer + -ing 1 ( def. )
Explanation
Suffering is the kind of pain you feel when you shatter your ankle and it's what you'll see all around you if you find yourself in the middle of a tornado or an earthquake. When you're suffering, you're not happy — in fact, you're quite miserable. The Latin roots that give us suffering and related words paint a vivid picture of what suffering feels like. The word comes from sub-, meaning "below," and ferre, "bear." Suffering is something pressing you down that you have to submit to and bear. It's definitely the opposite of fun.
Vocabulary lists containing suffering
Because of Winn-Dixie
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"The Young American" by Ralph Waldo Emerson
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The House of Hades
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“The housing is needed. There is a real human suffering cost tied to endless delays.”
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 9, 2026
Two years on from suffering his cardiac arrest, Lockyer returned to football with Bristol Rovers.
From BBC • Jun. 8, 2026
“The El Niño is going to be very bad this year, and there are spots in the United States already suffering from a drought,” he told me in a recent interview.
From MarketWatch • Jun. 8, 2026
The “Cars” franchise may have, God-willing, come to an end, but Pixar is still suffering the consequences.
From Salon • Jun. 6, 2026
A mortal cannot gaze upon the true appearance of a god without suffering consequences.
From "The House of Hades" by Rick Riordan
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
