What does headache mean?
A headache is an ache or pain felt in the head, commonly described as affecting one or both sides and sometimes accompanied by symptoms such as nausea, light sensitivity, or difficulty concentrating. The term is broad and can refer to many different kinds of head pain, ranging from mild tension headaches to severe conditions requiring medical attention. In everyday figurative use, “a headache” means an annoying or troublesome situation, as in “renovating the kitchen was a headache.” The word is also used in fixed expressions such as “give someone a headache,” where a physical condition represents an irritating burden. Because it can describe both a physical symptom and a figurative difficulty, headache is especially useful in ordinary conversation, medical discussion, and informal commentary.
nounA pain or aching sensation in the head, especially one affecting one or both sides of the head. Figuratively, it refers to an annoying, difficult, or troublesome situation.
- A pain or aching sensation in the head.
- An annoying, difficult, or troublesome situation.
"After staring at the screen for hours, she developed a severe headache."
"He took a painkiller and went to bed with a headache."
"Coordinating the two departments was a real headache for the new manager."
The plural is used for multiple headaches, repeated episodes, or a condition involving recurring head pain. The singular is also used as a mass-like label for the symptom in some contexts.
"Her migraines sometimes develop into severe headaches that last for hours."
The word headache literally names what it describes: pain in the head, while its figurative use turns an ordinary ache into an unavoidable problem.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does headache come from?
English “headache” is a compound of “head” and “ache,” both of which are Germanic words inherited through Old English. The combination developed within English as a transparent name for pain in the head and has remained recognizable in related Germanic languages, although the individual compounds differ. The figurative sense developed from the physical condition to describe something difficult or irritating.
Related word forms
How headache is actually used
In medical contexts, “headache” is the general term for pain in the head; specific conditions such as migraine may be described separately. Figuratively, it is informal but widely used for a persistent annoyance or difficult problem.
Easily confused with headache
A headache is any pain in the head, whereas a migraine is a specific type of recurrent neurological condition that can cause severe headache and other symptoms.