grief
/ɡriːf
/noun [mass noun]
1Intense sorrow, especially caused by someone’s death: she was overcome with grief...
- She was well known and respected in the area and her death has caused much grief and sorrow.
- Sarah wrote her book on coping with grief after the death of her daughter.
- Mr Lewis had owned a second-hand shop in Victoria Road, but in his grief after Terry's death he turned to drink.
Synonyms
sorrow, misery, sadness, anguish, pain, distress, agony, torment, affliction, suffering, heartache, heartbreak, broken-heartedness, heaviness of heart, woe, desolation, despondency, dejection, despair, angst, mortification;
mourning, mournfulness, bereavement, lamentation, lament;
remorse, regret, pining
informal blues
literary dolour, dole
1.1 [count noun] An instance or cause of intense sorrow: time heals griefs and quarrels...
- The griefs, the sorrows, the disappointments, the struggles, moments of joy and happiness, I wouldn't regret a single one.
- The Old Testament itself speaks prophetically of Christ: ‘Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows.’
- They know each other well, they share their griefs and sorrows.
2 informal Trouble or annoyance: we were too tired to cause any grief...
- I am getting constant grief from them about returning to Pattaya for this event.
- We've got a bye this weekend, which means I've got a chance to sort out a back problem that has been giving me a bit of grief in recent matches.
- It particularly bothers me that they give me even more grief than normal simply if I'm dressed in a tie.
Synonyms
trouble, annoyance, bother, irritation, vexation, harassment, nuisance
informal aggravation, aggro, hassle, headache
Phrases
come to grief
give someone grief
good grief!
Origin
Middle English: from Old French grief, from grever 'to burden' (see grieve1).