nausea
Americannoun
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a feeling of sickness in the stomach, especially when accompanied by a loathing for food and an involuntary impulse to vomit.
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extreme disgust; loathing; repugnance.
noun
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the sensation that precedes vomiting
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a feeling of disgust or revulsion
Usage
What does nausea mean? Nausea is a feeling of sickness in your stomach, as if you might vomit. People can experience nausea from food that has upset their stomach, from the side effects of medications, or from a number of other conditions that affect the stomach, such as seasickness, motion sickness, morning sickness, carsickness, and anxiety. To have nausea is to feel nauseous or nauseated. To nauseate is to cause nausea. Things that cause nausea can be described as nauseating (or, less commonly, nauseous). The word nausea can also be used in a figurative way meaning a feeling of disgust, revulsion, or repulsion, as in I felt a sense of nausea wash over me when witnessing their cruelty. Example: If you feel nausea coming on, try lying down and breathing through your nose.
Etymology
Origin of nausea
First recorded in 1560–70; from Latin nausea, nausia, from unattested Greek nausíā (Ionic nausíē ) “seasickness,” derivative of naûs “ship”; see -ia
Explanation
When you feel like you might throw up, that's nausea. I know you're feeling sea sick, but if our boat sinks, nausea will be the least of your problems. Nausea gets its root from the Greek word for ship, naus, so it might have originally meant sea sickness in particular. Remembering this origin might help you spell nausea correctly too, since it ends with “sea.” But nausea can strike on dry land just as well, from eating the wrong thing, catching the flu, reading on a moving bus...just thinking of it all makes me sick to my stomach.
Vocabulary lists containing nausea
The Honest Truth
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Flying to the Moon
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James Earl Jones (1931–2024) Tribute List
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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.
An individual with a variant on both their GLP-1 and GIP receptors is 14 times more likely to have nausea from Zepbound, according to the 23andMe research.
From MarketWatch • May 18, 2026
"In 2006, nearly 2,000 residents suffered from vertigo, sight problems and nausea after it rained in Guney, with blood tests showing cyanide in their blood," he said.
From Barron's • May 15, 2026
At the time, watching these videos didn’t elicit nausea or repulsion in Jemima—they came across as amusing.
From Slate • May 12, 2026
Officials said they are monitoring all cruise passengers for flulike symptoms like fever, body aches, dizziness, cough, shortness of breath, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 12, 2026
So easy, to feel them go down my throat: but blinking in the glare of my desk lamp, I was struck with a wave of revulsion so strong it was almost nausea.
From "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt
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.
