yearn
/jɝn/verb, noun
yearn is spelled Y-E-A-R-N: 5 letters and one syllable. It appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 30,017th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, yearn means “To have a strong desire for something or to do something; to long for or to do something” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in yearn?
| Letters | 5: Y-E-A-R-N |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 1 million words; the 30,017th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with | |
| Same letters |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is yearn?
Yearn appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 30,017th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce yearn?
- UK /jɜːn/
- US /jɝn/
Yearn has one syllable (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-yearn.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with yearn?
The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as yearn from its last stressed vowel (/ɜɹn/):
Spelled with the same letters in another order: renay.
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of yearn
- yearns present, singular, he/she/it, plural
- yearning participle, present
- yearned participle, past, singular, he/she/it, plural
- yearnt participle, past, rare, singular, he/she/it, plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does yearn mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To have a strong desire for something or to do something; to long for or to do something.
All I yearn for is a simple life.
- 2
To long for something in the past with melancholy or nostalgia.
- 3
Of music, words, etc.: to express strong desire or longing.
- 4
datedTo have strong feelings of affection, love, sympathy, etc., toward someone.
- 5
obsoleteTo be distressed or pained; to grieve; to mourn.
- 6
Often followed by out: to perform (music) which conveys or say (words) which express strong desire or longing.
- 7
archaicTo have a strong desire or longing (for something or to do something).
- 8
obsoleteTo cause (someone) to have strong feelings of affection, love, sympathy, etc.; also, to grieve or pain (someone).
- 9
ScotlandOf milk: to curdle, especially in the cheesemaking process.
- 10
ScotlandOf cheese: to be made from curdled milk.
- 11
ScotlandTo curdle (milk), especially in the cheesemaking process.
- 12
ScotlandTo make (cheese) from curdled milk.
noun
- 1
A strong desire or longing; a yearning, a yen.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Yearn in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | languir , regretter |
| German | sich sehnen, verlangen, vermissen |
| Portuguese | ansiar |
| Spanish | añorar |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does yearn come from?
The verb is derived from Middle English yernen, yern (“to express or feel desire; to desire, long or wish for; to lust after; to ask or demand for”) [and other forms], from Old English ġeornan (“to desire, yearn; to beg”) [and other forms], from Proto-West Germanic *girnijan (“to be eager for, desire”), from Proto-Germanic *girnijaną (“to desire, want”), from *gernaz (“eager, willing”) (from Proto-Indo-European *gʰer- (“to yearn for”)) + *-janą (suffix forming factitive verbs from adjectives). The noun is derived from the verb.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).