headache
Americannoun
-
a pain located in the head, as over the eyes, at the temples, or at the base of the skull.
-
an annoying or bothersome person, situation, activity, etc.
noun
-
Technical name: cephalalgia. pain in the head, caused by dilation of cerebral arteries, muscle contraction, insufficient oxygen in the cerebral blood, reaction to drugs, etc
-
informal any cause of worry, difficulty, or annoyance
-
Pain in the head, caused by stimulation of or pressure to any of various structures of the head, such as tissue covering the cranium, cranial nerves, or blood vessels. Headache can be a primary disorder, as in migraine or cluster headaches, or a common symptom associated with head injury or many illnesses such as acute infection, brain tumor or abscess, eye disorders such as glaucoma, dental disease, and hypertension.
-
See also cluster headache migraine
Etymology
Origin of headache
before 1000; Middle English; Old English hēafodece. See head, ache
Compare meaning
How does headache compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
A headache is a pain or ache in your head, especially one that lasts longer than a few minutes. You might get a headache after a day of staring at a computer screen. There are many reasons for getting a headache, from staying up too late to a stressful day to skipping your morning cup of coffee. A more serious type of headache, like a migraine, might keep you home from work for a day, but most headaches are just a nuisance. You can also describe a problem or struggle as a figurative headache: "Learning Danish is turning out to be a real headache." In Old English, the word was heafodece.
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.
“We think we are finally on the right track toward explaining this millennia-old mystery,” Morris Levin, the director of the Headache Center at the University of California, San Francisco, told The Guardian.
From Salon • Nov. 21, 2023
And now a recent global study published in the Journal of Headache and Pain has found that a poor night’s sleep can increase the chance of a migraine the following day.
From Scientific American • Oct. 25, 2023
"Headache, muscle aches, fever in some cases, chills, but they should go away in a day or two. So I would say hold tight, don't worry too much and that's all expected," Dr. Chin-Hong said.
From Fox News • Nov. 18, 2021
Tim Gittens, a Harlem native, earned his nickname — Headache — at the park and is now an assistant coach for the W.N.B.A.’s Dallas Wings.
From New York Times • Oct. 10, 2021
Headache, rapid heart beat, exhaustion, burning eyes, dizziness.
From "Dry" by Neal Shusterman and Jarrod Shusterman
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.
