sprain
verb /spreɪn/
/spreɪn/
Verb Forms
| present simple I / you / we / they sprain | /spreɪn/ /spreɪn/ |
| he / she / it sprains | /spreɪnz/ /spreɪnz/ |
| past simple sprained | /spreɪnd/ /spreɪnd/ |
| past participle sprained | /spreɪnd/ /spreɪnd/ |
| -ing form spraining | /ˈspreɪnɪŋ/ /ˈspreɪnɪŋ/ |
- sprain something to injure a joint in your body, especially your wrist or ankle, by suddenly twisting it
- I stumbled and sprained my ankle.
Collocations InjuriesInjuriesBeing injured- have a fall/an injury
- receive/suffer/sustain a serious injury/a hairline fracture/(especially British English) whiplash/a gunshot wound
- hurt/injure your ankle/back/leg
- damage the brain/an ankle ligament/your liver/the optic nerve/the skin
- pull/strain/tear a hamstring/ligament/muscle/tendon
- sprain/twist your ankle/wrist
- break a bone/your collarbone/your leg/three ribs
- fracture/crack your skull
- break/chip/knock out/lose a tooth
- burst/perforate your eardrum
- dislocate your finger/hip/jaw/shoulder
- bruise/cut/graze your arm/knee/shoulder
- burn/scald yourself/your tongue
- bang/bump/hit/ (informal) bash your elbow/head/knee (on/against something)
- treat somebody for burns/a head injury/a stab wound
- examine/clean/dress/bandage/treat a bullet wound
- repair a damaged/torn ligament/tendon/cartilage
- amputate/cut off an arm/a finger/a foot/a leg/a limb
- put on/ (formal) apply/take off (especially North American English) a Band-Aid™/(British English) a plaster/a bandage
- need/require/put in/ (especially British English) have (out)/ (North American English) get (out) stitches
- put on/rub on/ (formal) apply cream/ointment/lotion
- have/receive/undergo (British English) physiotherapy/(North American English) physical therapy
Synonyms injureinjureTopics Illnessb2- wound
- hurt
- bruise
- sprain
- pull
- strain
- injure to harm yourself or somebody else physically, especially in an accident:
- He injured his knee playing hockey.
- Three people were injured in the crash.
- wound [often passive] (rather formal) to injure part of the body, especially by making a hole in the skin using a weapon:
- 50 people were seriously wounded in the attack.
- hurt to cause physical pain to somebody/yourself; to injure somebody/yourself:
- Did you hurt yourself?
- bruise to make a blue, brown or purple mark (= a bruise) appear on the skin after somebody has fallen or been hit; to develop a bruise
- sprain to injure part of your body, especially your ankle, wrist or knee, by suddenly twisting it, causing pain and swelling
- pull to damage a muscle, etc, by using too much force
- strain to injure yourself or part of your body by making it work too hard:
- Don’t strain your eyes by reading in poor light.
- to injure/hurt/strain yourself
- to injure/hurt/sprain/pull/strain a muscle
- to injure/hurt/sprain your ankle/foot/knee/wrist/hand
- to injure/hurt/strain your back/shoulder/eyes
- to injure/hurt your spine/neck
- to be badly/severely/slightly injured/wounded/hurt/bruised/sprained
Oxford Collocations DictionarySprain is used with these nouns as the object:- ankle
- knee
- ligament
- …
Word Originearly 17th cent.: of unknown origin.