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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