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Definition of yearn : 1. To be filled with longing desire; to be harassed or rendered uneasy with longing, or feeling the want of a thing; to strain with emotions of affection or tenderness; to long; to be eager.
2. To be pained or distressed; to grieve; to mourn.
3. To curdle, as milk.
4. To pain; to grieve; to vex.

Synonyms:

droop, hanker after, fade, have a yen for, be passionate, ache, sympathize, feel, smart, be ardent, fret, aspire to, be eager for, be fervent, try, mourn, be desirous of, pant, yen, languish, pity, hurt, wish for, pine away, waste, suffer, thirst for, chafe, long for, compassionate, commiserate, grieve, hone, hunger for

hunger, thirst, crave, itch, long, grasp, welcome, hanker, pine, lust, need, fancy

aspire, rely, contemplate, trust, wish, anticipate, assume, hope, presume, want, expect, desire, intend, await, believe, dream of

covet, grudge, resent, envy, begrudge

Usage examples:

• And of those who have ceased to submit themselves to the Bible, the larger number are still infected with its non- natural spirit; having renounced one set of irrational marvels, they yearn more or less consciously for another to replace it.
• By this creative power they shall come to understand how I, their heavenly Father, love them, and yearn over them, and by their dependence as children upon their parents they shall learn to depend upon and trust me. - "Almost A Man", Mary Wood-Allen.
• I never yearned for a soul as I yearn for hers! - "Susanna and Sue", Kate Douglas Wiggin.