One word for missing someone

If you’re having a hard time describing the feeling of missing someone, this is the article for you. We’ve put together a list of the best words that will describe this exact feeling, which will make it much easier for you to talk about it in the future.

It’s difficult to come up with one particular word that’s best to describe the feeling of missing someone. However, we’ve included a list of some of the closest words to the meaning that we’re looking for:

• Wistfulness
• Saudade
• Remembrance
• Nostalgia
• Yearning
• Longing
• Emptiness

The preferred version is “wistfulness,” as it comes with the closest meaning to what we’re looking for. We use it to refer to ourselves missing someone or something that is no longer available to us or something that has happened in the past.

Wistfulness

Let’s start with the preferred description, which is “wistfulness.”

We might use wistfulness when we’re talking about a feeling of sadness or longing that comes from missing someone. We usually do it when someone has been a part of our life in the past, but now there is no way to get them to be in our lives again.

The definition of “wistfulness,” according to The Cambridge Dictionary, is “a feeling of sadness because you are thinking about something that is impossible or in the past.”

Wistfulness is a very powerful emotion. It makes us feel things that we no longer feel, especially when related to someone who has passed away. All we want with a feeling of wistfulness is for our loved ones to come back.

You might see “wistfulness” in the following situations:

• The wistfulness I feel with these photos is unmatched. I can’t get over how much I miss her.
• It’s true; I’m far too wistful to want to turn away from these memories!
• This wistfulness is by far the best thing I’ve ever imagined! I missed my sweet girl so much.
• My wistfulness makes it hard for me to get over our time together. She was the best thing that ever happened to me.
• Listen, wistfulness isn’t something that you should ignore. You should embrace it with open arms.

Saudade

“Saudade” is a great word of Portuguese origin. While not officially recognized in the English language, we can use it in informal situations to mean that someone is in a deep state of sadness that comes from missing someone who used to be in your life.

Since it’s a Portuguese word, we couldn’t find a Cambridge definition for “saudade.” However, the definition of “saudade,” according to Dictionary.com, is “a deep emotional state of melancholic longing for a person or thing that is absent.”

“Saudade” originally comes from a genre of music. In this music, listeners often reminisce about the old days, where the people they cared the most for were still in their lives.

“Saudade” can work in many English settings, as follows:

• This saudade is unlike anything I’ve felt before, and I’ll never forget our times together.
• Apparently, there’s a type of music known as saudade, which brings out memories of former lovers and people in your life.
• Saudade is difficult to deal with, especially when there’s nothing you can do to bring a person back to you.
• I hate saudade because it always makes me bawl my eyes out!
• Saudade is something that we should all experience. Missing someone is a human emotion, and we should all treat it with care.

Remembrance

Remembrance is something that occurs when you think back to the people in your life who have died. We don’t often use this word for people who still live, but it works well when you want to talk about past events and experiences with people that are no longer around.

The definition of “remembrance,” according to The Cambridge Dictionary, is “the act of remembering and showing respect for someone who has died or a past event.”

You’ll most famously hear “remembrance” when looking into Memorial Day. People pray and think in “remembrance” of all the fallen soldiers that fought for their countries.

We could use “remembrance” in the following examples:

• The remembrance I feel when thinking back to our times makes me smile.
• I’ll sit here in remembrance of you forever, my darling.
• I’ll always sit in remembrance and pray that you’re happy and healthy wherever you are.
• Remembrance is such a hard emotion to deal with because all you want to do is see that person again.
• I’m waiting here in silence, with the remembrance of our times together blowing through my mind!

Nostalgia

Nostalgia is one of the more positive feelings on this list. We use it to describe a feeling of pleasure that only comes when we think back to things that have happened in our past. There’s an element of sadness to it, but it’s mostly a happy and pleasant feeling.

The definition of “nostalgia,” according to The Cambridge Dictionary, is “a feeling of pleasure and also slight sadness when you think about things that happened in the past.”

Nostalgia is almost always triggered by something else. It could be a sight, smell, or sound that whisks us back to a time we remember when we were younger, and it might remind us of a person we once knew as well.

“Nostalgia” might work in the following ways:

• My nostalgia is immense when I look back on these old photos of our time together.
• The nostalgic feeling I get after talking to you shows how much I miss you.
• He’s nostalgic looking back at those photos, and you can tell he misses her deeply.
• I miss you all, and my nostalgia has completely taken over now!
• This nostalgia will be hard to leave behind! I wish I could stay in my hometown forever.

Yearning

“Yearning” is a verb we use to show a feeling of longing for something. Usually, someone will wish for something that once occurred in their past, especially if it’s now impossible for them to get that thing again. That’s why it works well to talk about missing someone.

The definition of “yearning,” according to The Cambridge Dictionary, is “a strong feeling of wishing for something, especially something that you cannot have or get easily.”

We can see “yearning” as a verb work as follows:

• I yearn to see her again because I just miss her so much.
• This yearning that I feel comes because of how much fun we used to have together.
• I miss him so much; you might as well say that I’m yearning!
• My yearning for my darling never seems to disappear. I’ll always be waiting for him to come back.
• I yearn for the love he used to give me.

Longing

“Longing” is synonymous with “yearning,” and we use it to talk about missing somebody. It means that we want them desperately, and it’s especially effective if we’re talking about someone who is out of our lives for good and there’s no way of getting them back.

The definition of “longing,” according to The Cambridge Dictionary, is “a feeling of wanting something or someone very much.”

“Longing” works in the following ways:

• I’m longing for that time we used to spend together.
• I’ll never forget you, and I’ll forever be longing for just another few moments of your time.
• He is always longing for his wife, but I’m afraid she’ll never come back to him.
• We’ve been longing for our old friends for as long as we can remember.
• It’s hard when all you can do is sit back and long for a time where you once cared deeply for someone.

Emptiness

Emptiness is the last word on this list because it strays the furthest away from the intended meaning. However, it still has its uses in this context.

Emptiness refers to a hollow feeling that someone might have when they miss a loved one. If the person that they’re missing will never be in their lives again, they might feel empty and sad because they don’t know what to do without that person.

The definition of “emptiness,” according to The Cambridge Dictionary, is “lack of meaning or purpose.”

You might see “emptiness” written in the following ways:

• The emptiness I feel in my heart now that he has left me is immeasurable.
• I need to find a way to cope with this emptiness before it consumes me.
• I miss everything we used to do together, and I’ve been left with nothing but emptiness.
• Your clear emptiness over your loss is difficult to watch.
• He’s clearly experiencing the emptiness that comes with losing someone close to him.

What Does It Mean To Miss Someone?

Now that we’ve spoken about all the best alternatives, it’s time to look at what it means to miss someone.

When we miss someone, it means that we remember the memories of our times together, and we wish that we could have them back to experience more memories.

We can miss people who are alive or who have passed on. As long as they aren’t currently in our life, then it’s possible that we might be missing them.