homesick

American  

[hohm-sik] / ˈhoʊmˌsɪk /

adjective

1. sad or depressed from a longing for home or family while away from them for a long time.

---

homesick British  

/ ˈhəʊmˌsɪk /

adjective

1. depressed or melancholy at being away from home and family

---

Other Word Forms

• homesickness noun

Etymology

Origin of homesick

First recorded in 1790–1800; home + sick ¹

Explanation

When you're away from home and you miss it terribly, you're homesick. Most kids get homesick when they first go to summer camp. Everyone feels homesick sometimes, but it's probably most common for kids to get homesick when they're on their first sleepover or visiting their grandparents, or even when they leave for college as freshmen. There is a wistful yearning included in the idea of being homesick — a longing to be back where you started. Homesickness came first, from the German heimweh, "home woe" or "home pain."

Example Sentences

Even with all that milieu and surrounded by many of their countrymen, some Americans still get homesick.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 16, 2026

When I first made the big decision to leave behind my hometown suburb of Washington, D.C., and move to New York City, I never anticipated ever feeling homesick.

From Salon • Jan. 25, 2026

Lonely and homesick for a country suffering through war, Viktoria began sharing her worries with ChatGPT.

From BBC • Nov. 6, 2025

While I’m not homesick, I did think the only good part of Hubert Charuel’s “Meteors,” an addiction-themed buddy dramedy, was when a character wore a vintage Lakers jersey.

From Los Angeles Times • May 23, 2025

It gives me this weird feeling, like I'm homesick but not for home.

From "Turtles All the Way Down" by John Green

Related Words

• lonely
• wistful