Synonyms of heartache

heartache

noun

ˈhärt-ˌāk 

as in sorrow

deep sadness especially for the loss of someone or something loved

the heartache she felt when she saw the innocent victims of the war

Synonyms & Similar Words

• sorrow
• grief
• anguish
• heartbreak
• agony
• pain
• guilt
• woe
• suffering
• sorrowfulness
• remorse
• distress
• dolor
• misery
• despair
• melancholy
• depression
• shame
• regret
• torment
• sorriness
• affliction
• unhappiness
• oppression
• dolefulness
• dejection
• blues
• gloom
• wretchedness
• dreariness
• dumps
• heartsickness
• contrition
• despondency
• melancholia
• desolation
• gloominess
• joylessness
• glumness
• miserableness
• rue
• doldrums
• despondence
• downheartedness
• forlornness
• desolateness
• blue devils
• self-reproach
• self-pity
• disconsolateness
• woefulness
• mopes
• dispiritedness

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• joy
• happiness
• ecstasy
• elation
• pleasure
• delight
• bliss
• euphoria
• glee
• jubilation
• exultation
• exhilaration
• exuberance
• rapture
• gladness
• cheerfulness
• joyousness
• mirth
• joyfulness
• blessedness
• cheer
• felicity
• cheeriness
• merriment
• humor
• optimism
• gaiety
• merrymaking
• lightheartedness
• jollity
• joviality
• gayness
• blissfulness
• hopefulness
• gleefulness
• enjoyment
• elatedness
• gladsomeness
• rapturousness
• mirthfulness
• contentment
• content
• sunniness
• contentedness

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of heartache

The case was unsolved for decades Blandford and Bennett recount the heartache their family went through after their sister’s death. — Avni Trivedi, CNN Money, 11 Aug. 2026

He's considered one of the most influential rappers of all time with songs that speak to the human experience of love, heartache and familial relationships. — CBS News, 10 Aug. 2026

Dimitrov, 35, is surging through the field one year after heartache on Centre Court, while Fery, the British 23-year-old, has grabbed the opportunity afforded to him by the tournament with both hands. — Ava Wallace, New York Times, 5 July 2026

But Swift will want that right carved out in her prenuptial agreement to avoid potential heartache, according to multiple family attorneys. — Rebecca Keegan, NBC news, 3 July 2026