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Harm vs Ache - What's the difference?

harm | ache |

As proper nouns the difference between harm and ache

is that harm is , low german, derived from herman, meaning "army man" while ache is a language spoken by the yi people of south-western china.

harm

English

(wikipedia harm)

Noun

(en noun)
  • Injury; hurt; damage; detriment; misfortune.
  • * , chapter=13
  • , title= The Mirror and the Lamp , passage=And Vickers launched forth into a tirade very different from his platform utterances. He spoke with extreme contempt of the dense stupidity exhibited on all occasions by the working classes. He said that if you wanted to do anything for them, you must rule them, not pamper them. Soft heartedness caused more harm than good.}}
  • That which causes injury, damage, or loss.
  • * (William Shakespeare)
  • We, ignorant of ourselves, / Beg often our own harms .

    Usage notes

    * Adjectives often applied to "harm": bodily, physical, environmental, emotional, financial, serious, irreparable, potential, long-term, short-term, permanent, lasting, material, substantial.

    Verb

    (en verb)
  • To cause injury to another; to hurt; to cause damage to something.
  • Derived terms

    * do no harm * harmer * harmless * harm's way * self-harm * unharmed

    Anagrams

    * ----

    ache

    English

    Alternative forms

    * (obsolete)

    Etymology 1

    From (etyl) due to the similarity in form and meaning of the two words.

    Verb

  • To suffer pain; to be the source of, or be in, pain, especially continued dull pain; to be distressed.
  • * Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet , Act II, Scene V:
  • Fie, how my bones ache!
  • * , chapter=7
  • , title= The Mirror and the Lamp , passage=The turmoil went on—no rest, no peace. […] It was nearly eleven o'clock now, and he strolled out again. In the little fair created by the costers' barrows the evening only seemed beginning; and the naphtha flares made one's eyes ache , the men's voices grated harshly, and the girls' faces saddened one.}}
  • (transitive, literary, rare) To cause someone or something to suffer pain.
  • Derived terms
    * ache for

    See also

    * (l)

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • Continued dull pain, as distinguished from sudden twinges, or spasmodic pain.
  • * Shakespeare, The Tempest , Act I, Scene II:
  • Fill all thy bones with aches .
    Derived terms
    * aches and pains * achy * backache * bellyache * earache * headache * stomachache * toothache

    References

    * Shorter Oxford English Dictionary, 5th edition.

    Etymology 2

    From (etyl) and modern (etyl) ache, from (etyl) .

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • (obsolete) Parsley.
  • Etymology 3

    Representing the pronunciation of the letter H .

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • (rare) A variant spelling of aitch .
  • Anagrams

    * English heteronyms ---- ==Jèrriais==

    Noun

  • wild celery
  • Synonyms

    * ----