English Reference

Phrasal verb

suffer from sth

Definition

phrasal verb. to experience physical or mental pain because of a specific illness or problem.

phrasal verb. to be affected by a specific disease, medical condition, or persistent negative state; typically used with chronic or long-term issues.

Examples

“Many people suffer from hay fever in the spring.”

“He has suffered from back pain ever since he started working at a desk all day.”

“The local economy continues to suffer from a lack of investment and the decline of the manufacturing sector.”

Examples

simple

“Many people suffer from hay fever in the spring.”

contextual

“He has suffered from back pain ever since he started working at a desk all day.”

complex

“The local economy continues to suffer from a lack of investment and the decline of the manufacturing sector.”

Usage

the object is usually a disease, a condition, or a systemic problem.

Teaching tip

contrast with 'suffer' used alone (to experience pain in general); 'suffer from' requires a specific cause or diagnosis as the object.

Pitfall

She is suffering of a cold.

She is suffering from a cold.

the verb 'suffer' always collocates with the preposition 'from' when identifying the cause of the distress.

Phrasal verb

Particles

from

Separability

inseparable

Pattern

suffer + from + object

Synonyms

havebe troubled bybe afflicted withendure

Antonyms

recover frombe healthybe free of

Grammar

This entry

Level
B1 · Intermediate
Updated

Scan code

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English Reference