discomfort

discomfort
discomfit, discomfort
Discomfit in current English means ‘to thwart the plans of’ (its original meaning) or ‘to embarrass or disconcert’. In its weaker second meaning, in which it occurs most often in the form discomfited, it overlaps with the unrelated word discomfort, which means ‘to make uneasy’, and in the normal flow of speech it is not always possible —for speaker or hearer —to distinguish them. Examples: (discomfit)

• I should have corrected her, but, discomfited, missed the right moment —Alison Lurie, 1969

• Widger was not wholly without Schadenfreude at seeing his informative colleague discomfited for once —Edmund Crispin, 1977

• He turned away from her, discomfited at her glance —L. Appignanesi, 1992

• (discomfort) His Section's Mediterranean operations, where his cheerful courage discomforted the Germans and Italians, are dealt with in later chapters —J. Ladd, 1979

• The show, entitled ‘Banality’, was eerie, discomforting, and seemed to offend nearly everyone —The Face, 1990.


Modern English usage. 2014.

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  • Discomfort — Dis*com fort, n. [OF. desconfort, F. d[ e]confort. See {Discomfort}, v. t.] 1. Discouragement. [Obs.] Shak. [1913 Webster] 2. Want of comfort; uneasiness, mental or physical; disturbance of peace; inquietude; pain; distress; sorrow. An age of… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Discomfort — Dis*com fort, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Discomforted}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Discomforting}.] [OF. desconforter, F. d[ e]conforter, to discourage; pref. des (L dis ) + conforter. See {Comfort}.] 1. To discourage; to deject. [1913 Webster] His funeral shall …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • discomfort — [n] irritation, pain ache, annoyance, discomfiture, discomposure, displeasure, disquiet, distress, embarrassment, hardship, hurt, inquietude, malaise, nuisance, soreness, trouble, uneasiness, unpleasantness, upset, vexation; concepts 410,728 Ant …   New thesaurus

  • discomfort — ► NOUN 1) slight pain. 2) slight anxiety or embarrassment. ► VERB ▪ cause discomfort to …   English terms dictionary

  • discomfort — [dis kum′fərt, dis′kum′fərt] n. [ME < OFr desconfort < desconforter, to discourage: see DIS & COMFORT] 1. lack of comfort; uneasiness; inconvenience 2. anything causing this vt. to cause discomfort to; distress …   English World dictionary

  • Discomfort — may refer to: Pain, an unpleasant sensation Suffering, an experience of unpleasantness See also Comfort This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an …   Wikipedia

  • discomfort — index agitate (perturb), badger, discompose, disconcert, disease, dissatisfaction, distress (anguish …   Law dictionary

  • discomfort — noun 1 slight pain ADJECTIVE ▪ acute (esp. BrE), considerable, extreme, great, severe ▪ growing ▪ He became conscious of a growing discomfort …   Collocations dictionary

  • discomfort — n. 1) to cause discomfort 2) to bear discomfort 3) to alleviate discomfort 4) physical discomfort * * * [dɪs kʌmfət] physical discomfort to alleviate discomfort to bear discomfort to cause discomfort …   Combinatory dictionary

  • discomfort — [[t]dɪskʌ̱mfə(r)t[/t]] discomforts 1) N UNCOUNT Discomfort is a painful feeling in part of your body when you have been hurt slightly or when you have been uncomfortable for a long time. She carried her left arm at an awkward angle, as if it were …   English dictionary

  • discomfort — {{11}}discomfort (n.) mid 14c., from O.Fr. desconfort (12c.), from desconforter (v.), from des (see DIS (Cf. dis )) + conforter (see COMFORT (Cf. comfort) (v.)). {{12}}discomfort (v.) c.1300, to deprive of courage, from O.Fr. desconforter; see… …   Etymology dictionary

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