hurting
hurting — verb
- hurtingpresent simple I / you / we / they
- hurtings3rd person singular
- hurtinging-ing form
- hurtingedpast simple
1. To feel physical pain in any part of yourself, or to inflict physical injury or
To feel physical pain in any part of yourself, or to inflict physical injury or soreness on another person or creature.
Quan fell off his bicycle and hurt his knee badly on the pavement.
hurt + [body part] on [surface]: pattern for physical injury
Gita's head hurts whenever she spends too long reading in dim light.
The nurse was very gentle so she would not hurt the frightened child any more.
Bao hurt his back lifting furniture for his new apartment last weekend.
Cyrus took his dog to the vet when it hurt its paw on broken glass.
文法句型
body part + hurts (intransitive)
hurt + [body part] (transitive)
用法筆記
The past tense and past participle are hurt (not hurted). The intransitive use ('my leg hurts') describes the sensation; the transitive use ('I hurt my leg') describes how the injury happened.
常見錯誤
2. To make someone feel very sad, upset, or wounded emotionally because of somethin
To make someone feel very sad, upset, or wounded emotionally because of something you say or do.
Amira was deeply hurt when her closest friend spread lies about her.
deeply hurt by [person's actions]: passive structure
Samir's cruel words hurt Theo more than he realised at the time.
It hurts Elena to see her parents arguing every single day.
Lukas did not mean to hurt his sister's feelings with that careless joke.
Ilan was hurt by the cold way his brother ignored him during dinner.
文法句型
hurt + person
be hurt by + person/words/actions
用法筆記
Subject is usually a person's words or actions, or the person who performs them. Often used in the passive: be hurt by [words/behaviour]. Distinguish from sense 1 (PHYSICAL PAIN) which describes bodily injury, not emotional distress.
常見錯誤
3. To have a bad effect on something like a business, industry, or opportunity so t
To have a bad effect on something like a business, industry, or opportunity so that it performs less well.
The rise in interest rates hurt the housing market badly last year.
hurt + [market/industry] + adverb: pattern for economic harm
Theo's business was hurt by the sudden drop in customer demand.
The severe drought hurt farmers across the whole region and ruined many crops.
Ryan admitted that his careless mistake had hurt the company's reputation badly.
文法句型
hurt + noun phrase (business/sales/chances/reputation)
用法筆記
Subject is typically an event, situation, or policy, not a person acting intentionally. Common collocations include hurt business, hurt sales, hurt chances, and hurt reputation. Not used for minor inconveniences — implies meaningful loss or setback.
常見錯誤
hurting — adjective
- hurtingpositive
- more hurtingcomparative
- most hurtingsuperlative
1. Having a physical injury or feeling pain in a part of your body.
Having a physical injury or feeling pain in a part of your body.
The hurting puppy whimpered softly in the corner of its cage.
After the car accident, several passengers were hurting and needed medical help.
be hurting after [event]: describing state following an accident
Elena wrapped a bandage around her hurting ankle and put ice on it.
The doctor said my arm was hurting badly and I needed to rest it today.
Lukas found a hurting bird with a broken wing near the park bench.
文法句型
be hurting
look hurting
feel hurting
用法筆記
Only used of living creatures, never of objects. You cannot say 'a hurting chair' or 'a hurting machine'. More common in spoken English than in formal writing.
常見錯誤
2. Feeling very sad, emotionally distressed, or deeply disappointed about something
Feeling very sad, emotionally distressed, or deeply disappointed about something that has happened.
Ilan was still hurting after his best friend moved away to another city.
hurting after [event]: describing emotional state following a loss
Amira looked deeply hurting when she heard that her project had been cancelled.
The little girl was hurting because her parents forgot to pick her up from school.
Samir felt hurting after the argument with his closest friend.
Theo was hurting after losing his old dog who had been with him for years.
- distressed
more formal; implies anxiety as well as sadness
- saddened
slightly more formal; describes becoming sad
- upset
broader; can mean angry, worried, or sad
文法句型
be hurting about/over [something]
feel hurting
用法筆記
Often followed by about or over to specify the cause: 'hurting about the breakup', 'hurting over the loss'. Different from sense 1 (INJURED) which describes physical, not emotional, pain.
常見錯誤
hurting — noun
1. A deep, ongoing feeling of sadness or emotional pain that stays with someone for
A deep, ongoing feeling of sadness or emotional pain that stays with someone for a period of time.
Ryan hid his hurting behind a brave smile but his eyes gave it away.
possessive + hurting: describing someone's emotional pain
There was a deep hurting in Asher's heart after he said goodbye to his family.
Time helped ease the hurting the old man felt when his wife passed away.
The song spoke about the hurting that comes from losing someone you truly love.
文法句型
a feeling of hurting
hurting + in/from [cause]
用法筆記
Unlike most English nouns formed from -ing participles, hurting in the noun sense refers specifically to emotional pain, not physical pain. For physical pain, use the verb form ('my back hurts') rather than the noun ('a hurting in my back').