ouch

See also: Ouch

English edit

Etymology 1 edit

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 edit

IPA^(key): /ˈaʊt͡ʃ/
Rhymes: -aʊtʃ
Audio (US-Inland North) (file)

Interjection edit

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!

Synonyms edit

(in all of the above senses): oof, ow, owie, youch, yow, yowch

Translations edit

expression of one’s own physical pain

Afrikaans: eina (af)
Arabic: أَحّ (ar) (ʔaḥḥ), حِلْيَة (ḥilya)
Hijazi Arabic: أي (ʔayy), أح (ʔaḥḥ), آخ (ʔāḵ)
Armenian: ախ (hy) (ax), վախ (hy) (vax)
Bikol Central: aray
Breton: aiou (br)
Bulgarian: ох (oh)
Catalan: au (ca)
Cherokee: ᎠᏲ (ayo)
Chinese:
Mandarin: 哎喲／哎哟 (zh) (āiyō), 哎呀 (zh) (āiyā)
Czech: au (cs)
Danish: av (da)
Dutch: au (nl)
Esperanto: aj (eo), uj (eo), aŭ (eo)
Finnish: ai (fi), au (fi), auts (fi), auh!, aijai, auh
French: aïe (fr), ouille (fr)
German: au (de), aua (de), autsch (de)
Greek: αχ (el) (ach), ωχ (el) (och)
Hebrew: אח (he), אוי (he)
Hungarian: jaj (hu)
Icelandic: ái
Ido: aye (io)
Indonesian: aduh (id)
Italian: ahi, ahia
Japanese: 痛い (ja) (itai), いて (ite), いてて (itete)
Kapampangan: aray, aw
Kimaragang: odoi
Korean: 아야 (ko) (aya)
Kurdish:
Northern Kurdish: ax (ku)
Lakota: yúŋ
Latin: au (la), hau
Lithuanian: au (lt)
Malay:
Jawi: ادوه

Rumi: aduh (ms)
Maltese: aħħ
Maori: taukahore
Navajo: ayáo, ayáh
Norwegian: au (no)
Ojibwe: iyoo
Pashto: وخ (wax), وئ (wëy)
Persian: آخ (fa) (âx), آی (fa) (ây)
Polish: aua (pl), au (pl), auć (pl)
Portuguese: ai (pt), au (pt)
Romanian: ai (ro), au (ro), ah (ro), vai (ro), aoleu (ro)
Russian: ой (ru) (oj), ай (ru) (aj), ох (ru) (ox), а́уч (ru) (áuč) (neologism)
Scottish Gaelic: oich, oit, aobh
Serbo-Croatian: au (sh), auć, joj (sh), jao (sh)
Spanish: ay (es), uy (es)
Swedish: aj (sv)
Tagalog: aray, aruy, aguy, ay (tl)
Tamil: ஐயோ (ta) (aiyō)
Telugu: అభా (abhā)
Thai: อุ๊ย (th) (úi), อุ๊ยตาย (úi-dtaai), โอ๊ย (th) (ói)
Tibetan: ཨ་ར (a ra) (general pain), ཨ་ཚ (a tsha) (heat), ཨ་ཆུ (a chu) (cold)
Vietnamese: úi da, ai da, ui da, đau (vi)
Yoruba: yéè
Yup'ik: akekataki
Zealandic: ai

expression in sympathy at another’s pain

Finnish: auts (fi), auh, oi voi, oijoi, voi voi
French: aïe (fr)
Greek: αχ (el) (ach)
Malay:
Jawi: ادوه, ادوي, وادوه

Rumi: aduh (ms), adoi, waduh
Norwegian: au da, uff da
Pashto: وخ (wax), وئ (wëy)
Swedish: aj (sv), aj aj aj, aj då
Tibetan: སྙིང་རྗེ (snying rje)
Yoruba: yéè

reply to an insult

Finnish: auts (fi), auh
French: aïe (fr)
Malay:
Jawi: ادوه, ادوي, وادوه

Rumi: aduh (ms), adoi, waduh
Pashto: وخ (wax), وئ (wëy)
Swedish: aj (sv)

Noun edit

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 edit

something that causes discomfort or pain

Verb edit

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 edit

to exclaim “ouch!” in discomfort or pain

Etymology 2 edit

Variant forms.

Noun edit

ouch (plural ouches)

Alternative form of ouche

References edit

^ “ouch”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.
^ “ouch”, in Dictionary.com Unabridged, Dictionary.com, LLC, 1995–present.
↑ ^3.0 ^3.1 ^3.2 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.

Anagrams edit

Chou, Chūō, chou

French edit

Pronunciation edit

IPA^(key): /uʃ/
Audio (file)

Interjection edit

ouch

interjection expressing a sharp pain: ouch!

Synonyms edit

(expression of pain): aïe, ahi, ouille, ayoye (Quebec)

[1] “ouch”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.

[DC-2] “ouch”, in Dictionary.com Unabridged, Dictionary.com, LLC, 1995–present.

[OED1933-3] 3.0 ^3.1 ^3.2 Oxford English Dictionary, 1884–1928, and First Supplement, 1933. ("ouch")

[4] “ouch”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.

[5] “ouch”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.

[6] 1654, Gayton, Pleas. Notes IV. ii. 176, "But harke Sancho Pancas Runs Ouching round the mountaine like a ranck-Asse, Braying for's Company.

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