AGONIZING Synonyms: 243 Similar and Opposite Words

agonizing 1 of 3

adjective

ˈa-gə-ˌnī-ziŋ

Definition of agonizing

as in painful

hard to accept or bear especially emotionally agonizing cries rose up from the dungeon

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in wrenching

intensely or unbearably painful died an agonizing death

Synonyms & Similar Words

agonizing

2 of 3

noun

as in suffering

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Dissimilar Words

as in indecision

Related Words

Dissimilar Words

agonizing

3 of 3

verb

present participle of agonize

as in plaguing

to cause persistent suffering to got into more trouble, further agonizing her poor mother

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in grieving

to feel deep sadness or mental pain agonized for days over whether she'd done the right thing

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of agonizing

Adjective

That’s vastly preferable to their endless, agonizing string of errors of omission. — Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 24 July 2026 For the family, the news was a sigh of relief after so many agonizing years. — Marlene Lenthang, NBC news, 22 July 2026

Noun

My agonizing over a coin toss illustrates the basic distortion that gambling exerts on spectating. — Rand Richards Cooper, Hartford Courant, 8 Jan. 2026

Verb

To accept that there will always be creatures teeming nearby, some of them agonizing, expelled from their days. — María Ospina, The Dial, 31 Mar. 2026 The parents who keep looking for him, agonizing over his health. — Connor Letourneau, San Francisco Chronicle, 7 Mar. 2026 See All Example Sentences for agonizing

Recent Examples of Synonyms for agonizing

Adjective

But for Tran’s family, the arrest revisited a painful, complicated chapter of their lives.

— Faith Karimi, CNN Money, 8 Aug. 2026
Many have called for empathy and compassion for the situation, while others struggle to reconcile calls for grace with Hilton’s history of profiting from celebrities’ most painful moments.

— Krystie Lee Yandoli, USA Today, 8 Aug. 2026

Definition of painful

Adjective

Bono penned a wrenching tribute to Hansard on the day of his death.

— Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 4 Aug. 2026
His most wrenching scene, when Stagg receives a devastating personal call but cannot react amid the intense geopolitical stakes, captured this tension.

— David Canfield, HollywoodReporter, 26 May 2026

Definition of wrenching

Noun

The organization stresses that recent promises must translate into concrete actions to end the violence and suffering for Gaza's children.

— Sarah Ferguson, Forbes.com, 7 Aug. 2026
The lawsuit requests damages of $10 million for past and future physical injuries, pain and suffering, emotional distress, and loss of enjoyment of life.

— Madison Lambert, NBC news, 7 Aug. 2026

Definition of suffering

Verb

That image stands in contrast to an epidemic of loneliness plaguing older adults that public health experts have sounded the alarm over for years.

— Taylor Seely, USA Today, 1 Aug. 2026
This completely sidesteps current debates plaguing Medicare Part B — namely, rapidly mounting medication spending has driven higher premiums and out-of-pocket payments for beneficiaries.

— Pooja Yerramilli, STAT, 24 July 2026

Definition of plaguing

Verb

Meanwhile, Wells’ father said his grieving family has received online attacks — including a sudden barrage of negative reviews against his wife, a nurse practitioner, and vitriol from strangers.

— Alisha Ebrahimji, CNN Money, 8 Aug. 2026
After the hearing, a relative emphasized that the woman asked to leave was grieving.

— Meredith Colias-Pete, Chicago Tribune, 7 Aug. 2026

Definition of grieving

Adjective

The plan would sanction top Russian leaders and introduce harsh new penalties on nations that purchase oil and natural gas from Russia.

— Claudia Grisales, NPR, 7 Aug. 2026
Lebson and Richards ⁠denied that allegation, saying that Robert Gilman was held in extremely harsh conditions, tortured and injected with mind-altering drugs by guards, treatment that led to his transfer to the civilian hospital.

— Reuters, NBC news, 7 Aug. 2026

Definition of harsh

Adjective

Brooks has described applying for compensation as torturous, a barricade that is constantly preventing him from being able to move forward.

— Richard A. Webster, ProPublica, 6 Aug. 2026
From 1873 to 1991, the island served as Costa Rica’s principal penitentiary, where some of the country’s worst criminals were sent to serve often short and torturous sentences.

— Rafa Sales Ross, Variety, 24 July 2026

Definition of torturous

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“Agonizing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/agonizing. Accessed 12 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of agonizing

adjective

noun

verb

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