Sudden sharp feelings of pain, distress, or emotion; acute mental or emotional distress.
From Middle English pange, possibly from a Germanic root related to 'prick' or 'stab.' The word has always carried both physical and emotional meanings, often describing brief but intense sensations.
Pangs reveals how we experience emotions as physical sensations - 'pangs of guilt' or 'hunger pangs' show that our language treats feelings as bodily experiences, reflecting the deep connection between emotional and physical pain in human consciousness.
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