sinking feeling
nounUK /ˌsɪŋkɪŋ ˈfiːlɪŋ/ · US /ˌsɪŋkɪŋ ˈfilɪŋ/
Etymology From sinking (noun) + feeling (noun), from the physical sensation.
1
An unpleasant feeling in the abdomen caused by hunger or, especially, apprehension or uneasiness.
- I have a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach.
- Appetite craving, but feels no better for the food which he eats, having always a sinking feeling at the stomach— […]1818, Joseph Ayre, “Cases. Section III. [Case I. Thomas Jackson, Aged 37, from the Country, Admitted March 30th a Patient of the Dispensary.]”, in Practical Observations on the Nature and Treatment of Marasmus, […], London: […] [W. Ross] for Baldwin, Cradock and Joy, […], →OCLC, page 245:
4 more examples
- The danger was over, and Annabel, though dreadfully weak and reduced, was pronounced out of danger, and in a fair way of recovery, though her sinking feelings and wretched mind led her to suppose she should soon be no more—nor did the assurances of those who attended her serve, in any measure, to convince her she was safe.1830, Miss M‘Leod [i.e., E. H. Macleod], chapter IX, in Belmont’s Daughter. […], volume III, London: […] [J. Darling] for A. K. Newman and Co., →OCLC, page 151:
- I cannot tell them what a sickening, sinking feeling came over me when I saw men, my fellow-men bought and sold like horses: […]1834, Thy Kingdom Come (Religious Tracts; no. 105), Philadelphia, Pa.: […] William Stavely, […] [for the Episcopal Female Tract Society of Philadelphia for the Society of the Protestant Episcopal Church for the Advancement of Christianity in Philadelphia], →OCLC, page 2:
- She had dragging pains in the loins; general weakness, especially in the back; sinking feelings in the stomach, and a craving for food, without appetite; her bowels are sluggish; tongue pale and flabby.1840 January–July, Alfred Hudson, “[Article] 31.—On the Use of Nitrate of Silver in Some Affections of the Mucous Membrane.”, in W[illiam] Braithwaite, editor, The Retrospect of Practical Medicine and Surgery, […], 2nd American edition, number I, New York, N.Y.: Adee & Estabrook, […], published 1843, →OCLC, page 75:
- Both were silent, for their hearts were full, and overcome with the sinking feeling of depression accompanying all associations with that melancholy word farewell!1845, [anonymous; attributed to Richard Williams Morgan], chapter VIII, in The Fortunes of Roger de Flor; or, The Alumgavars, volume I, London: Richard Bentley, […], →OCLC, page 145: