as in painful
causing or feeling bodily pain
the afflictive disease known as shingles is a reactivation of the virus that causes chicken pox
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Recent Examples of afflictive
Perhaps this afflictive uncertainty can be redefined.
—
Krista Stevens, Longreads, 26 Apr. 2018
Krista Stevens, Longreads, 26 Apr. 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for afflictive
Adjective
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The Spanish government is moving to rein in real estate purchases by foreigners and curb the spread of short-term rentals, part of a series of measures that officials say are necessary to alleviate a painful housing crunch that has rapidly become one of the worst in Europe.—
Liz Alderman,
New York Times,
23 Jan. 2025
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Trump also makes clear his intent to apply painful public and government pressure on private-sector DEI practices as well, and does not cloak his reasons.—
The Editors,
National Review,
23 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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Several years later, the property is still a sore subject for Atwater.—
Ben Wieder,
Miami Herald,
26 Jan. 2025
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After all, shin splints, sore feet, and blisters can ruin any activity.—
Rosie Marder,
Travel + Leisure,
25 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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Somebody Somewhere is tiny: a gorgeous, introspective, intimate story about a woman with devastatingly mundane problems whose chief obstacle is her own aching sense of grief and dislocation.—
Kathryn VanArendonk,
Vulture,
9 Dec. 2024
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In this novel about the shape-shifting nature of love, Parsons captures Kit’s grief in aching and honest terms.—
Annabel Gutterman,
TIME,
6 Dec. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near afflictive
Cite this Entry
“Afflictive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/afflictive. Accessed 3 Feb. 2025.
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