pang

Everyday

1. A sudden sharp pain or feeling. tree →
2. A sudden strong feeling, like a pang of guilt or a pang of hunger. tree →

In the lessons

In stories, a pang of sadness or envy tells the reader a character's feelings changed suddenly. Common phrases: «hunger pangs», «a pang of guilt», «a pang of regret».

Examples

• She felt a pang of guilt. tree →
• Hunger pangs woke him up. tree →
• Mole felt a pang when he smelled his old home. tree →
• A pang of envy hit her when she saw the bike. tree →
• He felt a pang of sadness at leaving. tree →
• The pangs of hunger made him grumpy. tree →
• And at this thought the pangs of hunger made him feel quite sick with fear. tree →

Note

Plural: pangs. Sudden, short feeling.

In Jewish tradition

A sudden pain, here the trembling of the Philistines who hear of the Israelites' crossing of the sea. The prophets and psalms compare fear to the sharp pangs of a woman in childbirth, and the Psalms also say the wicked have no pangs at their death.

Interpretation. The fear of the peoples is read as the effect on the nations of God's rescue of Israel. The pangs of a woman in travail are read as a picture of sudden, unavoidable terror and judgment. The psalmist's complaint about the wicked having no pangs is read as a puzzle of why the wicked prosper.

Examples

• The peoples have heard, they tremble; pangs have taken hold on the inhabitants of Philistia. (Torah EXO.15.14, JPS 1917) tree →
• Trembling took hold of them there, pangs, as of a woman in travail. (Writings PSA.48.7, JPS 1917) tree →
• For there are no pangs at their death, and their body is sound. (Writings PSA.73.4, JPS 1917) tree →
• Shall not pangs take hold of thee, as of a woman in travail? (Prophets JER.13.21, JPS 1917) tree →

Note

Plural: pangs. Sudden, short feeling.