What does sorehead mean?
A sorehead is someone who reacts to a disappointment, disagreement, or slight with prolonged resentment, complaint, or sulking. The term is informal and usually conveys mild disapproval: it can describe a child pouting after losing a game, or an adult who continues to blame others long after an incident is over. It often implies an unreasonable attachment to a grievance, although context determines whether the description is affectionate, teasing, or critical. A sorehead may still accept an apology but remain outwardly displeased, so the word emphasizes both resentment and an unwillingness to let the matter go. It is commonly used figuratively in comparisons such as 'sulking like a sorehead,' and its informal tone makes it more conversational than legal, journalistic, or academic. Related usage appears in the adjective 'soreheaded,' meaning annoyed or resentful.
nounAn informal term for a person who is annoyed, resentful, or unwilling to forgive or move on.
- A person who is annoyed, resentful, or inclined to hold a grudge.
- A person who complains persistently or takes minor setbacks personally.
"After losing the final point, he sulked like a sorehead."
"Don't be a sorehead; apologise and move on."
"The argument left both sides behaving like soreheads."
The plural is used for multiple people who are annoyed, resentful, or unwilling to forgive.
"The two soreheads refused to speak to one another for the rest of the afternoon."
A sorehead may lose the argument but still win the last word—and keep the grudge for weeks.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does sorehead come from?
The compound 'sorehead' is formed from 'sore' and 'head' and follows the older English pattern of 'head' meaning a person with a particular quality or disposition, as in 'foolhead' and 'drunkhead'. The sense of someone physically sore or injured is older and figurative, while the modern derogatory sense of an irritable or resentful person developed from it. The expression is recorded in English from the early 19th century.
Related word forms
How sorehead is actually used
Informal and often mildly critical or teasing rather than seriously insulting. It is frequently used in the expression 'like a sorehead' to describe sulking or refusing to participate in good humor.