migraine

Meaning

1. (countable, uncountable) A severe, disabling headache, usually affecting only one side of the head, and often accompanied by nausea, vomiting, photophobia and visual disturbances.
2. (countable, uncountable) A neurological condition characterised by such headaches.

Synonyms

megrim

sick headache

hemicrania

headache

hemicrany

migraine headache

sick

🤢

splitting headache

brow-ague

throbbing head

Translations

migraine

migraña

Migräne

emicrania

jaqueca

ημικρανία

migraine

enxaqueca

migranya

migren

migrana

شقيقة

mîgren

hémicrânie

Pronounced as (IPA)

/ˈmaɪɡɹeɪn/

Etymology

Cognate with French: -

In summary

1777 re-spelling (following French) of late 14th century Middle English megrim, from 13th century Old French migraigne, from Vulgar Latin pronunciation of Latin hemicrania (“pain in one half of the head”), from Ancient Greek ἡμικρανία (hēmikranía), from ἡμι- (hēmi-, “hemi-, half”) + κρανίον (kraníon, “skull”) (whence also cranium), a calque of Egyptian gs-tp (“headache”), from gs (“half”) + tp (“head”), although the link between the Egyptian magical papyri and the Greek ἡμικρανία (hēmikranía) could be purely incidental.
Cognate to megrim, hemicrania.