discomfort
Americannoun
-
discomforts
plural
-
an absence of comfort or ease; uneasiness, hardship, or mild pain.
-
anything that is disturbing to or interferes with comfort.
verb (used with object)
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discomforts,
present (3rd person singular)
-
discomforted,
past participle, past
-
discomforting
present participle
noun
-
an inconvenience, distress, or mild pain
-
something that disturbs or deprives of ease
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
discomfortsimple
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discomfortssimple
-
have discomfortedperfect
-
has discomfortedperfect
-
am discomfortingprogressive
-
are discomfortingprogressive
-
is discomfortingprogressive
-
have been discomfortingperfect progressive
-
has been discomfortingperfect progressive
Past
-
discomfortedsimple
-
had discomfortedperfect
-
was discomfortingprogressive
-
were discomfortingprogressive
-
had been discomfortingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of discomfort
First recorded in 1300–50; (for the verb) Middle English discomforten “to discourage, pain,” from Anglo-French descomforter “to sadden, grieve”; equivalent to dis- 1 + comfort; noun derivative of verb
Explanation
Discomfort is the feeling of irritation, soreness, or pain that, though not severe, is annoying. Every year, people who get a cold or the flu experience a few days of discomfort. The noun discomfort is good for describing situations when you aren't quite in pain, but you don't feel very good. Things that cause discomfort include a dull toothache, a blister on your foot, and a terrible mattress. Discomfort can also describe embarrassment, like the discomfort you'd feel if you suddenly realized you were in the wrong classroom.
Vocabulary lists containing discomfort
Stay Strong: Forc and Fort
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That Hurts! Synonyms for "Pain"
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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.
See Examples For:
And to create this air of discomfort, Fennell crafted a movie that darts from hopeful to despairingly bleak in the blink of an eye.
From Salon ● Oct. 2, 2026
Finding the pain and discomfort too much, Howard says she visited her GP to ask about breast reduction surgery, but was told there was "no chance" she would qualify.
From BBC ● Sep. 30, 2026
She says everyday activities that once came with substantial discomfort are now much easier.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 22, 2026
I suspect this is one of those peculiarly British collisions of ambiguity, assumption and social discomfort.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026
Any discomfort would be worth getting back to Ashton Place.
From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood
As the latest heat wave discomforts Europe, France is arguing about air conditioning.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 29, 2026
After the interview, Isaac and co-host Ronald Young Jr. talk about the challenges and discomforts of self-promotion.
From Slate ● Aug. 25, 2024
For Mason Kidd, a 22-year-old freelance film producer, those are small discomforts worth bearing to watch history.
From BBC ● May 11, 2024
They demonstrate that resilience is not always about unwavering composure but about challenging the status quo, addressing discomforts with candor, and urging listeners to find strength beyond the lures of capitalism.
From Salon ● Jan. 30, 2024
So each night, the Count’s discomforts, which made Westley writhe and twist, were really sort of all right.
From "The Princess Bride" by William Goldman
He was lively with the new ball and again after lunch, when he discomforted Jacks.
From BBC ● Nov. 13, 2025
He was discomforted on 19 by a Carse blow to the ribs - an area England did not explore often enough.
From BBC ● Jun. 20, 2025
Jaiswal, who made a double century in the second Test, was discomforted by Wood's pace and poked to slip.
From BBC ● Feb. 15, 2024
Mr. Kriegel’s raw emotion, it was plain, discomforted them.
From New York Times ● Oct. 11, 2022
All the same, the reproof in John Holbrook’s voice left her discomforted.
From "The Witch of Blackbird Pond" by Elizabeth George Speare
Stark, discomforting amplification diminishes intimacy and the luxurious richness of Bullock’s soprano, which easily fills a room on its own, suggests quiet terror, the lonely state of Nina Simone’s “Images.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 19, 2026
That calmed worries that had built on Wall Street that the inflation data could show a discomforting reacceleration.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 29, 2024
The absence of a human hand — made glaring and discomforting through the tiniest lapses of approximated intuition — can render the listening experience a valueless exchange, the music a bunk currency.
From Washington Post ● Feb. 16, 2023
If your thirst for strange Santas is still not quenched, this discomforting Mexican morality tale will be the gift that keeps on giving — nightmares, that is.
From New York Times ● Dec. 2, 2022
Something is discomforting about a sun that gives no heat but keeps shining.
From "Piecing Me Together" by Renée Watson
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.
