Added 9 October 2026
yearning
/ˈjɝnɪŋ/ noun
In Latin: dēsīderium Wiktionary
noun Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about yearning at Wordnik → Where our words come from →
-
A wistful or melancholy longing.
She had a yearning to see her long-lost sister again.
verb
- present participle and gerund of yearn
noun
Origin
From Middle English yerning, from Old English ġierning, ġierninge. Equivalent to the gerund (yearn + -ing). yearn comes from Proto-West Germanic *girnijan, from Proto-Germanic *girnijaną, from *gernaz (“eager, willing”) + *-janą, from Proto-Indo-European *gʰer- (“to yearn for”). By surface analysis, yearn + -ing.
From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)