ouch
See also: Ouch
English
Etymology 1
Uncertain. Some sources say the interjection is attested since 1838[1] (and specifically in American English) and derives ultimately from German autsch,[2][3] perhaps specifically via Pennsylvania German outch (“cry of pain”), as early attestations of the interjection are from Pennsylvania.[3] However, others say the interjection is a "mere"[4] or "natural" exclamation attested since the mid 1600s,[5] and the 1933 OED[3] cites one instance of a verb "ouch" in 1654, "Sancho Pancas Runs Ouching round the mountaine like a ranck-Asse".[6]
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈaʊt͡ʃ/
- Rhymes: -aʊtʃ
Audio (US-Inland North) (file)
Interjection
ouch
- An expression of one's own physical pain.
- Ouch! You stepped on my toe! That hurt!
- An expression in sympathy at another's pain.
- Ouch! Her sunburn looks awful.
- A reply to an insult seen as savage (frequently one that is tongue-in-cheek or joking).
- Ouch. How could you say that?
- An expression of disappointment.
- Ouch, I really wanted to do that.
- (slang) Expressing surprise at the high price of something.
- Ouch, one hundred thousand dollars for a car! I could never afford that!
Translations
expression of one’s own physical pain
|
expression in sympathy at another’s pain
Noun
ouch (plural ouches)
- (informal) Something that causes discomfort or pain.
- Synonym: ooch
- 1986 June, “RhuliGel Soothes the Itches and Ouches of Summer [advertisement]”, in Myrna Blyth, editor, Ladies’ Home Journal, volume CIII, number 6, New York, N.Y.: Meredith Publications, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 161, column 2:
- RhuliGel soothes the itches and ouches of summer.
Translations
something that causes discomfort or pain
Verb
ouch (third-person singular simple present ouches, present participle ouching, simple past and past participle ouched)
- (intransitive) To exclaim "ouch!" in discomfort or pain.
- 1984 April 21, “Mousie Mousie Wildflower”, in Gay Community News, page 18:
- Imperturbability your skill, not mine / I ouch out loud and clear / Your forgiveness, like Pope's divine / I'm just an angry queer
Translations
to exclaim “ouch!” in discomfort or pain
Etymology 2
Variant forms.
References
- “ouch”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.
- “ouch”, in Dictionary.com Unabridged, Dictionary.com, LLC, 1995–present.
- Oxford English Dictionary, 1884–1928, and First Supplement, 1933. ("ouch")
- “ouch”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
- “ouch”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.
- 1654, Gayton, Pleas. Notes IV. ii. 176, "But harke Sancho Pancas Runs Ouching round the mountaine like a ranck-Asse, Braying for's Company.
French
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /uʃ/
Audio (file)
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