yearn

verb

yearned; yearning; yearns

intransitive verb

1
: to long persistently, wistfully, or sadly
yearns to make a difference
2
: to feel tenderness or compassion
yearner noun
yearningly adverb
Choose the Right Synonym for yearn

long, yearn, hanker, pine, hunger, thirst mean to have a strong desire for something.

long implies a wishing with one's whole heart and often a striving to attain.

longed for some rest

yearn suggests an eager, restless, or painful longing.

yearned for a stage career

hanker suggests the uneasy promptings of unsatisfied appetite or desire.

always hankering for money

pine implies a languishing or a fruitless longing for what is impossible.

pined for a lost love

hunger and thirst imply an insistent or impatient craving or a compelling need.

hungered for a business of his own
thirsted for power

Examples of yearn in a Sentence

yearned for a little house in the country
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The last quality marking the cinema of the rice cooker is yearning. Lisa Wong MacAbasco, Vogue, 3 July 2025 The smattering of comparisons she’s been drawing to Leonard Cohen are apt for (and assuredly cherished by) the Vermont singer on her third album — the luminant vessel of a swarm of kinetic lyrical energy log jammed at the front gates of her mind, yearning for the page and demanding a romp. Aaron Davis, Sacbee.com, 29 June 2025 For the longest time Americans yearned for China to leave communism behind, only for the country to do just that. John Tamny, Forbes.com, 27 June 2025 Our only other gripe would be yearning for more pockets. Maggie Slepian, Travel + Leisure, 26 June 2025 See All Example Sentences for yearn

Word History

Etymology

Middle English yernen, from Old English giernan; akin to Old High German gerōn to desire, Latin hortari to urge, encourage, Greek chairein to rejoice

First Known Use

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

Time Traveler
The first known use of yearn was before the 12th century

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Yearn.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/yearn. Accessed 9 Jul. 2025.

Kids Definition

yearn

verb
1
: to desire eagerly
2
: to feel tenderness or sympathy
yearner noun

More from Merriam-Webster on yearn

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