-algia Also -algic.
Pain, usually in a specified part of the body.
[Greek algos, pain.]
Most words ending in -algia are specialist medical terms, but a few are more generally known, such as neuralgia, intense intermittent pain along the course of a nerve.
One that seems not to fit here is nostalgia, a sentimental longing or wistful affection for the past; this first entered the language meaning homesickness (Greek nostos, return home), hence having a sense close to ‘pain of separation’.
A few terms have linked adjectives in -algic, for example arthralgic, myalgic, neuralgic, and nostalgic.
Examples of words in -algia
Word origins are from Greek.
| arthralgia | pain in a joint | arthron, a joint |
| causalgia | severe burning pain in a limb caused by injury to a peripheral nerve | kausos, heat or fever |
| cephalalgia | headache | kephalē, head |
| erythromelalgia | a disease caused by dilation of the peripheral blood vessels, associated with burning, redness of the skin, and pain | eruthros, red, plus melos, limb |
| gastralgia | pain in the stomach | gastēr or gastr-, stomach |
| mastalgia | pain in the breast caused by congestion during lactation, or other causes | mastos, breast |
| myalgia | pain in a muscle or group of muscles | mus, muscle |
| neuralgia | intense, typically intermittent pain along the course of a nerve, especially in the head or face | neuron, a nerve |
| ostalgia | a pain associated with some abnormal condition in a bone | osteon, bone |
| otalgia | earache | ōtalgia, from ous or ōt-, ear |
| prosopalgia | stabbing pain in the face, also called trigeminal neuralgia | prosōpon, face |
| rachialgia | pain in or due to the spine | rhakhis, spine |
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