Pain is any pain, including sharp and severe pain; an ache is a dull pain that goes on for a long time; hurt is most often a verb meaning to be painful or to cause pain: My back hurts. Ache hides in familiar words like headache, toothache and backache. When you say what's wrong with you, the simplest way is to say what hurts or aches, and keep pain for the feeling itself: a sharp pain, chest pain.
pain, ache or hurt — can you pick the right one?
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a sharp/bad/dull pain + in + body part; have a headache/toothache/backache; body part + aches; body part + hurts; it hurts + to + verb
- I've had a dull pain in my lower back since I moved the sofa.
- After ten hours at the laptop, my eyes ache and I really need a break.
- My throat hurts when I swallow, so I'm working from home today.
What changed
First versionAfter the run I felt a sharp hurt in my knee.
RevisionAfter the run I felt a sharp pain in my knee.
Dictionaries also list hurt as a noun, so it ends up where pain is needed. But the noun hurt means emotional pain, feeling upset, not a sensation in your knee. Physical pain is pain: a sharp pain in my knee. If you want to use hurt, make it a verb: My knee hurt after the run.
The noun hurt belongs to the world of feelings: She couldn't hide her hurt. As verbs for long-lasting pain, ache and hurt are almost the same: after a hike, My legs ache and My legs hurt mean the same thing. For sudden pain from a knock, only hurt works: Ouch, that hurts!
Your turn
Ouch! You've just stepped on my foot, and it really ___!
Show the answer
hurts — Someone stepped on your foot, so the pain is sudden and sharp: it really hurts. Aches describes a dull pain that lasts for hours, and it doesn't fit a sudden knock.
Tell a doctor or a colleague what hurts. Name the part of your body and say how long it has been hurting.
My shoulder has been hurting since Monday, when I carried my suitcase up the stairs.
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