anguish

/ˈaŋ-gwish/

Middle English angoise, angwissche, borrowed from Anglo-French anguisse, angoisse, going back to Latin angustia (usually in plural angustiae) "narrowness, narrow passage, limitations, straits" (Late Latin, "suffering, distress"), noun derivative (with -ia ), of angustus "narrow, confined, straitened," probably from *angos- (whence angōr-, angor "suffocation, anguish") + *-to-, adjective suffix

noun

  1. extreme pain, distress, or anxiety

cries of anguish

sorrow grief anguish woe regret mean distress of mind. sorrow implies a sense of loss or a sense of guilt and remorse. grief implies poignant sorrow for an immediate cause.

verb

  1. to suffer anguish

  2. to cause to suffer anguish

He anguished over his failure.