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⇱ sore - WordReference.com Dictionary of English

sore

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UK:**UK and possibly other pronunciationsUK and possibly other pronunciations/ˈsɔːr/US:USA pronunciation: IPA and respellingUSA pronunciation: IPA/sɔr/ ,USA pronunciation: respelling(sôr, sōr)

Inflections of 'sore' (adj):
sorer
adj comparative
sorest
adj superlative

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
sore /sɔr/USA pronunciation   adj., sor•er, sor•est, n., adv. 
adj. 
  1. Pathologyphysically painful or sensitive, such as a wound or diseased part:a sore arm.
  2. Pathology suffering bodily pain from wounds, bruises, etc.:[be + ~]I'm sore all over from that heavy lifting we did yesterday.
  3. Pathology, Psychiatry suffering mental pain:[be + ~]sore at heart.
  4. Psychiatry causing great mental pain:[before a noun]a sore loss.
  5. causing very great misery or hardship:[before a noun]The team is in sore need of a new pitcher.
  6. Informal Terms annoyed;
    irritated;
    angered:[be + ~ (+ at + object)]The boss is sore (at me) because I lost her report.
  7. causing annoyance or irritation:Her accident with the car is a sore subject right now.

n. [countable]
  1. an irritated or infected spot on the body that is painful:His skin was covered with scaly sores.

adv. 
  1. [Archaic.]sorely.
sore•ly, adv.: The injured star pitcher will be sorely missed by his teammates.
sore•ness, n. [uncountable]

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026
sore  (sôr, sōr),USA pronunciation adj., sor•er, sor•est, n., adv. 
adj. 
    1. Pathologyphysically painful or sensitive, as a wound, hurt, or diseased part:a sore arm.
    2. Pathologysuffering bodily pain from wounds, bruises, etc., as a person:He is sore because of all that exercise.
    3. Pathology, Psychiatrysuffering mental pain;
      grieved, distressed, or sorrowful:to be sore at heart.
    4. Psychiatrycausing great mental pain, distress, or sorrow:a sore bereavement.
    5. causing very great suffering, misery, hardship, etc.:sore need.
    6. Informal Termsannoyed;
      irritated;
      offended;
      angered:He was sore because he had to wait.
    7. causing annoyance or irritation:a sore subject.

    n. 
    1. a sore spot or place on the body.
    2. a source or cause of grief, distress, irritation, etc.

    adv. 
    1. [Archaic.]sorely.
    • bef. 900; Middle English (adjective, adjectival, noun, nominal, and adverb, adverbial); Old English sār; cognate with Dutch zeer, German sehr, Old Norse sārr
    sore′ness, n. 
      1. tender. 3. aggrieved, hurt, pained, vexed. 4. grievous, distressing, painful, depressing. 8. infection, abscess, ulcer, wound.
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
sore /sɔː/ adj
  1. (esp of a wound, injury, etc) painfully sensitive; tender
  2. causing annoyance: a sore point
  3. resentful; irked
  4. urgent; pressing: in sore need
  5. (postpositive) grieved; distressed
  6. causing grief or sorrow
 n
  1. a painful or sensitive wound, injury, etc
  2. any cause of distress or vexation
 adv
  1. archaic direly; sorely (now only in such phrases as sore pressed, sore afraid)
Etymology: Old English sār; related to Old Norse sārr, Old High German sēr, Gothic sair sore, Latin saevus angryˈsoreness n
'sore' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
Collocations: I have a sore [throat, thumb, back, shoulder, arm], sore [glands, tonsils], have a sore spot on my [back, nose, face], more...

🗣️Forum discussions with the word(s) "sore" in the title:

(noun) gives me a sore throat/a cough
a bear with a sore head
a read for sore eyes [sight]
a red sore of…
a sight to make sore eyes sorer
a sore subject
a sore to the eyes
"a terribly sore throat" or "a terrible sore throat"
ache, hurt, kill, sore
all sore
And there she wept, and sigh’d fill sore
anguish sore/pain
Are you sore/sored?
as Sally rubbed my sore/painful/hurt feet.
as sore as sore
Canker sore
Constrained to work sore to
Do you say that you "sore at someone"?
Each night the man returned to his cabin, sore and worn out, feeling that his whole day had been spent in vain.
eyes feel sore? [when cutting onions]
gives me a sore throat
Have a sore eye now
have a sore throat/eye
having a sore back in these past few days [perfect progressive]
He has sore eyes. How long <has he played/has he been playing> games on the computer?
Headaches and sore elbows
hit on a sore point
honor the sore wrists and loose fillings from the days of yore
I have a sore eyes.
I have rushed o'er /Should come on pinion, strong and fleet,/Proclaiming vengeance sore
more...

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