Definitions for yearnyɜrn

Random House Webster's College Dictionary

yearn^*yɜrn(v.i.)

to have an earnest or strong desire; long.
to feel tenderness; be moved.

^* Syn: yearn , long , hanker , pine all mean to feel a strong desire for something. yearn stresses the depth and power of the desire: to yearn to begin a new life. long implies a wholehearted desire for something that seems unattainable: to long to relive one's childhood. hanker suggests a restless craving: to hanker after fame and fortune. pine adds the notion of physical or emotional suffering due to the real or apparent hopelessness of one's desire: to pine for a lost love.

Origin of yearn:

bef. 900; ME yernen, OE giernan, der. of georn eager, c. OS, OHG gern, Go -gairns desirous; akin to Gk chaírein to rejoice, Skt háryati (he) desires

yearn′er(n.)

Princeton's WordNet

hanker, long, yearn(verb)
desire strongly or persistently
ache, yearn, yen, pine, languish(verb)
have a desire for something or someone who is not present
"She ached for a cigarette"; "I am pining for my lover"
yearn(verb)
have affection for; feel tenderness for

Wiktionary

yearn(Verb)
To long, have a strong desire (for something).
yearn(Verb)
To long back with melancholy, nostalgically

Origin: From giernan, from girnijanan.

Webster Dictionary

Yearn(verb)
to pain; to grieve; to vex
Yearn(verb)
to be pained or distressed; to grieve; to mourn
Yearn(u)
to curdle, as milk
Yearn(verb)
to be filled with longing desire; to be harassed or rendered uneasy with longing, or feeling the want of a thing; to strain with emotions of affection or tenderness; to long; to be eager