woe

1 of 2

interjection

ˈwō 

—used to express grief, regret, or distress

woe

2 of 2

noun

plural woes

1

: a condition of deep suffering from misfortune, affliction, or grief

2

: ruinous trouble : calamity, affliction

economic woes

Synonyms

Interjection

• alack
• alas
• ay
• wirra [Irish]

Noun

• affliction
• agony
• anguish
• distress
• excruciation
• hurt
• misery
• pain
• rack
• strait(s)
• torment
• torture
• travail
• tribulation

Choose the Right Synonym for woe

sorrow, grief, anguish, woe, regret mean distress of mind.

sorrow implies a sense of loss or a sense of guilt and remorse.

a family united in sorrow upon the patriarch's death

grief implies poignant sorrow for an immediate cause.

the inexpressible grief of the bereaved parents

anguish suggests torturing grief or dread.

the anguish felt by the parents of the kidnapped child

woe is deep or inconsolable grief or misery.

cries of woe echoed throughout the bombed city

regret implies pain caused by deep disappointment, fruitless longing, or unavailing remorse.

nagging regret for missed opportunities

Examples of woe in a Sentence

Interjection

ah, woe, with the death of the last of my siblings I am alone in this world!

Noun

The city's traffic woes are well-known.

a tale of misery and woe

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

After three years of scrambling to hire and train pilots, United Airlines is encouraging its aviators to take unpaid time off next month, the latest example of how woes at Boeing — including delays in aircraft delivery — are rippling through the aviation industry. —Lori Aratani, Washington Post, 2 Apr. 2024

But Remarkable Healthcare’s staffing crisis is compounded by the company’s financial woes, which have gotten worse in recent months, according to current and former staff members and filings in bankruptcy court. —Ciara McCarthy, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 29 Mar. 2024

Lurching from one crisis to another Country Garden’s woes echo that of another huge, and now insolvent, Chinese property giant Evergrande. —Laura He, CNN, 29 Mar. 2024

Eric Chavez is back as the batting coach which should help shore up our offensive woes (hopefully). —Daniel Kohn, SPIN, 27 Mar. 2024

Financial woes Built to its current height of 10 stories in 1949, the New Brotherhood Building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places along with other neighboring properties in the Brotherhood Block. —Bill Lukitsch, Kansas City Star, 26 Mar. 2024

But given the pope’s health woes, most recently a seemingly emergency visit to a Rome hospital to check out his lungs, his silence spoke volumes. —Jason Horowitz, New York Times, 24 Mar. 2024

The financial crisis stemming from Trump’s many legal woes, in other words, is also a campaign crisis for him. —Susan B. Glasser, The New Yorker, 21 Mar. 2024

Bloomberg Bad bureaucracy Bayer CEO Bill Anderson blames the company’s corporate bureaucracy for some of its strategic woes in a Fortune opinion piece. —Diane Brady, Fortune, 22 Mar. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Interjection

Middle English wa, wo, from Old English wā; akin to Old Norse vei, interjection, woe, Latin vae

First Known Use

Interjection

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing woe

• woe is me
• woe to/betide
• tale of woe

Kids Definition

woe

noun

ˈwō

1

: great suffering from loss, misfortune, or trouble

2

: trouble entry 2 sense 1b

economic woes