YEARN: Synonyms and Related Words. What is Another Word for YEARN?

Need another word that means the same as “yearn”? Find 21 synonyms and 30 related words for “yearn” in this overview.

The synonyms of “Yearn” are: ache, languish, pine, yen, hanker, long, crave, desire, want, want badly, wish, feel a longing, have a longing, covet, lust, pant, hunger, thirst, be aching, itch, be itching

Yearn as a Verb

Definitions of "Yearn" as a verb

According to the Oxford Dictionary of English, “yearn” as a verb can have the following definitions:

• Have affection for; feel tenderness for.
• Desire strongly or persistently.
• Have an intense feeling of longing for something, typically something that one has lost or been separated from.
• Be filled with compassion or warm feeling.
• Have a desire for something or someone who is not present.

Synonyms of "Yearn" as a verb (21 Words)

ache	Be the source of pain. She ached for a cigarette.
be aching	Form or compose.
be itching	Be identical to; be someone or something.
covet	Wish, long, or crave for (something, especially the property of another person. She covets her sister s house.
crave	Have a craving, appetite, or great desire for. I must crave your indulgence.
desire	Feel or have a desire for want strongly. He never achieved the status he so desired.
feel a longing	Perceive by a physical sensation, e.g., coming from the skin or muscles.
hanker	Feel a strong desire for or to do something. She hankered to go back.
have a longing	Go through (mental or physical states or experiences.
hunger	Feel or suffer hunger. When he had fasted forty days and forty nights he afterwards hungered.
itch	Of a person experience an itch. She is itching to start the project.
languish	Assume a sentimentally tender or melancholy expression or tone. She still languished after Richard.
long	Desire strongly or persistently.
pant	Utter while panting as if out of breath. He was panting when he reached the top.
pine	Have a desire for something or someone who is not present.
thirst	Feel the need to drink. An opponent thirsting for revenge.
want	Hunt or look for want for a particular reason. I want my own room.
want badly	Have need of.
wish	Order politely express a wish for. We wished for peace.
yen	Have a desire for something or someone who is not present.

Usage Examples of "Yearn" as a verb

• She yearned for a glimpse of him.
• They yearned to go home.
• No fellow spirit yearned towards her.

Associations of "Yearn" (30 Words)

ambition	Have as one s ambition. Her ambition was to become a pilot.
aspiration	The act of inhaling; the drawing in of air (or other gases) as in breathing. There is no aspiration if the syllable begins with s.
aspire	Rise high; tower. Above the domes of loftiest mosques these pinnacles aspire.
covet	Wish, long, or crave for (something, especially the property of another person. She covets her sister s house.
crave	Have a craving, appetite, or great desire for. If only she had shown her daughter the love she craved.
craving	An intense desire for some particular thing. A craving for chocolate.
desideratum	Something that is needed or wanted. Integrity was a desideratum.
desire	Something desired. John spake unto him and desired him in like manner and contestation as before.
desperation	Desperate recklessness. She wrote to him in desperation.
eagerly	With eagerness; in an eager manner. Original illustrations are eagerly sought by collectors.
hanker	Feel a strong desire for or to do something. She hankered to go back.
hankering	A strong desire to have or do something. He had a hankering to return to Scotland.
homesick	Longing to return home. He was homesick for America after five weeks in Europe.
homesickness	A longing to return home. I lived four years in London without a single pang of homesickness.
hunger	Feel or suffer hunger. Hunger for affection.
insatiable	Of a person having an insatiable appetite or desire for something especially sex. An insatiable demand for old buildings to restore.
interminable	Tiresomely long; seemingly without end. We got bogged down in interminable discussions.
lengthen	Make or become longer. The mascara will lengthen your lashes.
long	Of relatively long duration. He couldn t wait any longer.
longing	Prolonged unfulfilled desire or need. Miranda felt a wistful longing for the old days.
pine	A pineapple. Pine potpourri.
protracted	Relatively long in duration tediously protracted. Protracted negotiations.
sabbatical	Relating to a sabbatical. She s away on sabbatical.
starve	Deprive of something necessary. The arts are being starved of funds.
thirst	A strong desire for something. They quenched their thirst with spring water.
unquenchable	Impossible to quench. His enthusiasm was unquenchable.
unrequited	(of a feeling, especially love) not returned. Unrequited unanswered love.
want	Feel or have a desire for want strongly. The wheel wants greasing.
weariness	Extreme tiredness; fatigue. Weariness overcame her after twelve hours and she fell asleep.
yearning	Involving or expressing yearning. He felt a yearning for the mountains.