Standard Lemma guide

ouch

intj · name · noun · verb · 9 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • /ˈaʊt͡ʃ/
  • rhymes with -aʊtʃ
  • US: Inland North Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • CMU ARPABET: AW1 CH Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

intj

Meaning 1

An expression of one's own physical pain.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • Ouch! You stepped on my toe! That hurt!

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

intj

Meaning 2

An expression in sympathy at another's pain.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • Ouch! Her sunburn looks awful.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

intj

Meaning 3

A reply to an insult seen as savage (frequently one that is tongue-in-cheek or joking).

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • Ouch. How could you say that?

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

intj

Meaning 4

An expression of disappointment.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • Ouch, I really wanted to do that.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

intj

Meaning 5

Expressing surprise at the high price of something.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: slang

Examples

  • Ouch, one hundred thousand dollars for a car! I could never afford that!

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

6

name

Meaning 6

A surname.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

7

noun

Meaning 7

Something that causes discomfort or pain.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: informal

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: ooch

Antonyms: none provided

8

noun

Meaning 8

Alternative form of ouche.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: alt-of, alternative

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

9

verb

Meaning 9

To exclaim "ouch!" in discomfort or pain.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: intransitive

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

Uncertain. Some sources say the interjection is attested since 1838 (and specifically in American English) and derives ultimately from German autsch, perhaps specifically via Pennsylvania German outch (“cry of pain”), as early attestations of the interjection are from Pennsylvania. However, others say the interjection is a "mere" or "natural" exclamation attested since the mid 1600s, and the 1933 OED cites one instance of a verb "ouch" in 1654, "Sancho Pancas Runs Ouching round the mountaine like a ranck-Asse".

Variant forms.

Across languages

Translations

154 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Afrikaans: eina — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Arabic: أَحّ (ʔaḥḥ) — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Arabic: حِلْيَة (ḥilya) — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Arabic: أي (ʔayy) — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Arabic: أح (ʔaḥḥ) — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Arabic: آخ (ʔāḵ) — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Armenian: ախ (ax) — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Armenian: վախ (vax) — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Central Bikol: aray — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Breton: aiou — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Bulgarian: ох (oh) — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Catalan: au — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Catalan: ai — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Cherokee: ᎠᏲ (ayo) — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Chinese Mandarin: 哎喲 /哎哟 (āiyō) — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Chinese Mandarin: 哎呀 (āiyā) — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Chinook Jargon: a-nåh' — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Czech: au — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Danish: av — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Dutch: au — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Dutch: auw — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Esperanto: aj — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Esperanto: uj — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Esperanto: aŭ — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Finnish: ai — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Finnish: au — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Finnish: auts — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Finnish: auh! — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Finnish: aijai — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Finnish: auh — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • French: aïe — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • French: ouille — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • German: au — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • German: aua — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • German: autsch — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Greek: αχ (ach) — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Greek: ωχ (och) — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Greek: άουτς (áouts) — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Hanunoo: adig — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Hebrew: אח — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Hebrew: אוי — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Hungarian: jaj — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Icelandic: ái — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Ido: aye — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Indonesian: aduh — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Italian: ahi — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Italian: ahia — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Japanese: 痛い (itai) — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Japanese: いて (ite) — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Japanese: いてて (itete) — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Kapampangan: aray — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Kapampangan: aw — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Kimaragang: odoi — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Korean: 아야 (aya) — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Northern Kurdish: ax — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Lakota: yúŋ — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Latin: au — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Latin: hau — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Lithuanian: ai — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Malay: ادوه — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Malay: aduh — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Maltese: aħħ — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Māori: taukahore — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Navajo: ayáo — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Navajo: ayáh — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Norwegian: au — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Ojibwe: iyoo — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Pashto: وخ (wax) — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Pashto: وئ (wëy) — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Persian: آخ (âx) — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Persian: آی (ây) — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Polish: aua — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Polish: au — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Polish: auć — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Portuguese: ai — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Portuguese: au — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Romanian: ai — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Romanian: au — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Romanian: ah — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Romanian: vai — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Romanian: aoleu — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Russian: ой (oj) — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Russian: ай (aj) — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Russian: ох (ox) — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Russian: а́уч (áuč) — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Scottish Gaelic: oich — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Scottish Gaelic: oit — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Scottish Gaelic: aobh — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Serbo-Croatian: au — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Serbo-Croatian: auć — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Serbo-Croatian: joj — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Serbo-Croatian: jao — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Spanish: ay — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Spanish: uy — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Spanish: au — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Spanish: aw — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Spanish: auch — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Swedish: aj — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Tagalog: aray — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Tagalog: aruy — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Tagalog: aguy — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Tagalog: ay — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Tamil: ஐயோ (aiyō) — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Telugu: అభా (abhā) — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Telugu: అబ్బా (abbā) — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Thai: อุ๊ย (úi) — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Thai: อุ๊ยตาย (úi-dtaai) — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Thai: โอ๊ย (ói) — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Tibetan: ཨ་ར (a ra) — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Tibetan: ཨ་ཚ (a tsha) — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Tibetan: ཨ་ཆུ (a chu) — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Vietnamese: úi da — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Vietnamese: ai da — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Vietnamese: ui da — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Vietnamese: đau — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Yoruba: yéè — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Yup'ik: akekataki — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Zealandic: ai — expression of one’s own physical pain
  • Finnish: auts — expression in sympathy at another’s pain
  • Finnish: auh — expression in sympathy at another’s pain
  • Finnish: oi voi — expression in sympathy at another’s pain
  • Finnish: oijoi — expression in sympathy at another’s pain
  • Finnish: voi voi — expression in sympathy at another’s pain
  • French: aïe — expression in sympathy at another’s pain
  • Greek: αχ (ach) — expression in sympathy at another’s pain
  • Malay: ادوه — expression in sympathy at another’s pain
  • Malay: ادوي — expression in sympathy at another’s pain
  • Malay: وادوه — expression in sympathy at another’s pain
  • Malay: aduh — expression in sympathy at another’s pain
  • Malay: adoi — expression in sympathy at another’s pain
  • Malay: waduh — expression in sympathy at another’s pain
  • Norwegian: au da — expression in sympathy at another’s pain
  • Norwegian: uff da — expression in sympathy at another’s pain
  • Pashto: وخ (wax) — expression in sympathy at another’s pain
  • Pashto: وئ (wëy) — expression in sympathy at another’s pain
  • Swedish: aj — expression in sympathy at another’s pain
  • Swedish: aj aj aj — expression in sympathy at another’s pain
  • Swedish: aj då — expression in sympathy at another’s pain
  • Telugu: అయ్యో (ayyō) — expression in sympathy at another’s pain
  • Tibetan: སྙིང་རྗེ (snying rje) — expression in sympathy at another’s pain
  • Yoruba: yéè — expression in sympathy at another’s pain
  • Finnish: auts — reply to an insult
  • Finnish: auh — reply to an insult
  • French: aïe — reply to an insult
  • Malay: ادوه — reply to an insult
  • Malay: ادوي — reply to an insult
  • Malay: وادوه — reply to an insult
  • Malay: aduh — reply to an insult
  • Malay: adoi — reply to an insult
  • Malay: waduh — reply to an insult
  • Pashto: وخ (wax) — reply to an insult
  • Pashto: وئ (wëy) — reply to an insult
  • Swedish: aj — reply to an insult
  • Tagalog: umaray — to exclaim “ouch!” in discomfort or pain