50 Idioms for Pain with Meaning & Sentences
Idioms for Pain
1. Bite the bullet
Meaning: To endure a painful or unpleasant situation with courage.
In a Sentence: She decided to bite the bullet and tell her boss the truth.
Other Ways to Say: Tough it out, Face the music, Get it over with.
2. Pain in the backside
Meaning: Something or someone irritating or inconvenient.
In a Sentence: Waiting in long lines can be a real pain in the backside.
Other Ways to Say: A hassle, A pain, A thorn in one’s side.
3. Add insult to injury
Meaning: To make a bad situation worse.
In a Sentence: Losing the game was bad enough, but the rude comments added insult to injury.
Other Ways to Say: Make things worse, Rub salt in the wound.
4. A thorn in one’s side
Meaning: Someone or something that continually causes trouble.
In a Sentence: The delays in delivery have been a thorn in our side for months.
Other Ways to Say: A constant problem, A nuisance, A pain.
5. Rub salt in the wound
Meaning: To make someone feel even worse about something bad.
In a Sentence: Mentioning his failure just rubbed salt in the wound.
Other Ways to Say: Make it worse, Add to the pain, Deepen the hurt.
6. No pain, no gain
Meaning: You must endure discomfort to achieve success.
In a Sentence: She trains daily because she believes in “no pain, no gain.”
Other Ways to Say: Hard work pays off, Suffer to succeed.
7. In agony
Meaning: Suffering from intense pain.
In a Sentence: He was in agony after spraining his ankle.
Other Ways to Say: In pain, In torment, In suffering.
8. Break one’s heart
Meaning: To cause deep emotional pain.
In a Sentence: It broke her heart to see her child leave home.
Other Ways to Say: Devastate, Cause sorrow, Shatter emotionally.
9. Cry over spilled milk
Meaning: To be upset about something that cannot be changed.
In a Sentence: Stop crying over spilled milk and move on.
Other Ways to Say: Let it go, Don’t dwell, Move forward.
10. Hurt like hell
Meaning: To be extremely painful.
In a Sentence: That paper cut hurt like hell.
Other Ways to Say: Really hurt, Painful, Burned badly.
11. Feel the pinch
Meaning: To experience financial pain or hardship.
In a Sentence: Many families are feeling the pinch due to rising prices.
Other Ways to Say: Struggle financially, Suffer cuts, Experience hardship.
12. A stab in the back
Meaning: A betrayal that causes emotional pain.
In a Sentence: Her friend’s gossip felt like a stab in the back.
Other Ways to Say: Betrayal, Backstabbing, Disloyal act.
13. Take a beating
Meaning: To suffer pain or damage, especially physically or financially.
In a Sentence: His business took a beating during the recession.
Other Ways to Say: Suffer, Get hit hard, Be damaged.
14. Shooting pain
Meaning: Sudden, sharp pain that travels along a path.
In a Sentence: She felt a shooting pain run down her leg.
Other Ways to Say: Sharp pain, Electric pain, Intense discomfort.
15. Hurt one’s feelings
Meaning: To cause emotional pain.
In a Sentence: His harsh words really hurt my feelings.
Other Ways to Say: Offend, Upset, Wound emotionally.
16. Twist the knife
Meaning: To make someone’s pain worse deliberately.
In a Sentence: She twisted the knife by reminding him of his past failures.
Other Ways to Say: Aggravate, Rub it in, Deepen the wound.
17. Like pulling teeth
Meaning: Extremely difficult or painful.
In a Sentence: Getting him to talk is like pulling teeth.
Other Ways to Say: Very hard, Excruciating effort, Painful process.
18. Burn with pain
Meaning: To feel intense pain, especially with a burning sensation.
In a Sentence: Her skin burned with pain after the sunburn.
Other Ways to Say: Sting, Scorch, Hurt badly.
19. Feel the burn
Meaning: To experience muscle pain from intense physical effort.
In a Sentence: You’ll feel the burn after this workout.
Other Ways to Say: Muscle pain, Workout strain, Exercise ache.
20. Tear at one’s heart
Meaning: To cause deep emotional pain.
In a Sentence: The sight of the abandoned puppy tore at her heart.
Other Ways to Say: Heart-wrenching, Emotionally painful, Devastating.
21. Pain runs deep
Meaning: Emotional pain that is profound and lasting.
In a Sentence: The pain of losing her father runs deep.
Other Ways to Say: Deep sorrow, Lingering grief, Long-term hurt.
22. Take it hard
Meaning: To be emotionally affected.
In a Sentence: He took the breakup hard.
Other Ways to Say: Be devastated, Struggle emotionally, Hurt inside.
23. In deep pain
Meaning: Experiencing intense emotional or physical pain.
In a Sentence: She’s in deep pain after the accident.
Other Ways to Say: Hurting badly, Suffering, Devastated.
24. Ache for
Meaning: To long for something painfully.
In a Sentence: He ached for her presence.
Other Ways to Say: Long for, Miss deeply, Yearn painfully.
25. Cut to the bone
Meaning: To affect someone very deeply and painfully.
In a Sentence: His words cut me to the bone.
Other Ways to Say: Deeply wound, Hurt severely, Cut deeply.
26. Cry over spilled milk
Meaning: To be upset about something that cannot be undone.
In a Sentence: He kept complaining about the lost deal, but it’s no use crying over spilled milk.
Other Ways to Say: Dwell on the past, Regret uselessly, Waste energy on the unchangeable
27. Bite the bullet
Meaning: To endure pain or difficulty with courage.
In a Sentence: She had to bite the bullet and face the painful surgery.
Other Ways to Say: Face the music, Endure it, Tough it out
28. Hit where it hurts
Meaning: To cause someone emotional or physical pain deliberately.
In a Sentence: His words really hit where it hurts during the argument.
Other Ways to Say: Strike a nerve, Be harsh, Hurt deeply
29. Add insult to injury
Meaning: To make a bad situation worse.
In a Sentence: Not only did he ignore my advice, but he also blamed me—adding insult to injury.
Other Ways to Say: Make things worse, Rub salt in the wound, Intensify the pain
30. Hurt like hell
Meaning: To be extremely painful.
In a Sentence: My back hurt like hell after lifting those heavy boxes.
Other Ways to Say: Agonizing pain, Hurt badly, Throb with pain
31. In agony
Meaning: Suffering from intense pain.
In a Sentence: He lay in agony after falling off the ladder.
Other Ways to Say: In torment, In suffering, In severe pain
32. No pain, no gain
Meaning: You must endure suffering to achieve success.
In a Sentence: She reminded herself ‘no pain, no gain’ while training for the marathon.
Other Ways to Say: Endure to succeed, Push through, Hard work pays off
33. Pain is temporary
Meaning: Suffering doesn’t last forever.
In a Sentence: He kept going, repeating the mantra, “Pain is temporary, pride is forever.”
Other Ways to Say: Short-term suffering, Temporary discomfort, It will pass
34. Feel the pinch
Meaning: To experience hardship or suffering, especially financially.
In a Sentence: We really felt the pinch after the bills doubled.
Other Ways to Say: Face difficulty, Suffer a loss, Be strained
35. Cut to the bone
Meaning: To affect deeply or severely.
In a Sentence: His betrayal cut her to the bone.
Other Ways to Say: Wound deeply, Hurt profoundly, Strike to the core
36. Break your heart
Meaning: To cause emotional pain or sorrow.
In a Sentence: It broke my heart to see the dog in such poor condition.
Other Ways to Say: Shatter emotionally, Devastate, Cause heartbreak
37. Get under one’s skin
Meaning: To irritate or upset someone deeply.
In a Sentence: His sarcastic comments really get under my skin.
Other Ways to Say: Annoy, Provoke, Bother intensely
38. Walk on broken glass
Meaning: To endure a painful or risky situation carefully.
In a Sentence: She felt like she was walking on broken glass at her new job.
Other Ways to Say: Tread carefully, Be cautious, Endure discomfort
39. Rub salt into the wound
Meaning: To make a painful experience worse.
In a Sentence: Laughing at his failure just rubbed salt into the wound.
Other Ways to Say: Worsen the pain, Add to misery, Intensify suffering
40. Feel like death warmed over
Meaning: To feel extremely ill or exhausted.
In a Sentence: After the flu, I felt like death warmed over.
Other Ways to Say: Look awful, Feel terrible, Be drained
41. Tear your hair out
Meaning: To be extremely frustrated or distressed.
In a Sentence: She was tearing her hair out trying to solve the problem.
Other Ways to Say: Be stressed, Be frantic, Lose patience
42. In the wars
Meaning: Suffering from multiple injuries or problems.
In a Sentence: After the bike crash, he looked like he’d been in the wars.
Other Ways to Say: Be injured, Look beaten up, Be bruised
43. Pain in the heart
Meaning: Emotional sorrow or grief.
In a Sentence: The loss of her pet left a pain in the heart.
Other Ways to Say: Heartache, Grief, Deep sadness
44. On pins and needles
Meaning: Experiencing anxiety or nervous anticipation.
In a Sentence: I was on pins and needles waiting for the test results.
Other Ways to Say: Be anxious, Be tense, Be edgy
45. Stab in the back
Meaning: A betrayal that causes emotional pain.
In a Sentence: Being left out by her friend felt like a stab in the back.
Other Ways to Say: Betrayal, Treachery, Backstab
46. Like pulling teeth
Meaning: Extremely difficult or painful to do.
In a Sentence: Getting him to talk about his feelings is like pulling teeth.
Other Ways to Say: Very hard, Excruciating effort, Painfully difficult
47. Sour taste
Meaning: A lasting unpleasant feeling after a painful experience.
In a Sentence: The way he ended things left a sour taste in her mouth.
Other Ways to Say: Bad memory, Lingering pain, Disappointment
48. Burning pain
Meaning: A sharp, intense physical pain.
In a Sentence: He felt a burning pain in his shoulder after the injury.
Other Ways to Say: Sharp ache, Intense sting, Fiery discomfort
49. Feel the burn
Meaning: To feel muscle pain during intense exercise.
In a Sentence: You know your workout is working when you feel the burn.
Other Ways to Say: Experience strain, Push limits, Pain from exertion
50. Give someone a headache
Meaning: To cause someone stress or irritation.
In a Sentence: These constant changes are giving me a headache.
Other Ways to Say: Annoy, Stress out, Be bothersome
