Link Centre Dictionary

sore

UK/sɔː/ US/soɹ/ common informal

adjective

1.

hurting

  • “the tender spot on his jaw”
Similar
2.

causing misery or pain or distress

  • “it was a sore trial to him”
  • “the painful process of growing up”
Similar
3.

roused to anger

  • “stayed huffy a good while” Mark Twain
  • “she gets mad when you wake her up so early”
  • “mad at his friend”
  • “sore over a remark”
Synonyms
Similar
4.

inflamed and painful

  • “his throat was raw”
  • “had a sore throat”
Synonyms
Similar

noun

Origin

From Middle English sor, from Old English sār (“ache, wound”, noun) and sār (“painful, grievous”, adjective), from Proto-West Germanic *sair, from Proto-Germanic *sairaz (adjective) from Proto-Indo-European *seh₂iro-, enlargement of *seh₂y- (“to be fierce, afflict”). See also Dutch zeer (“sore, ache”), Danish sår (“wound”), German sehr (“very”); also Hittite [script needed] (sāwar, “anger”), Welsh hoed (“pain”), Ancient Greek αἱμωδία (haimōdía, “sensation of having teeth on edge”).

Phrases

  • canker sore
  • cold sore
  • desert sore
  • fuck sore
  • like a bear with a sore head Terms derived from sore (adjective)
  • mad as a bear with a sore head Terms derived from sore (adjective)
  • oriental sore
  • pressure sore
  • running sore
  • saddle sore
  • sight for sore eyes Terms derived from sore (adjective)
  • sore boob means more boob Terms derived from sore (adjective)

Related words

Broader terms

Narrower terms

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.