1
as in wrenching
intensely or unbearably painful
he finally visited the doctor when the pain became too excruciating to ignore
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2
as in searing
difficult to endure
the excruciating heat that the settlers faced as they crossed the deserts of the Southwest
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3
as in painful
hard to accept or bear especially emotionally
most excruciating of all was the endless wait for news of any survivors of the plane crash
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4
as in intense
extreme in degree, power, or effect
the excruciating grief they felt upon the loss of their dear grandfather
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as in plaguing
to cause persistent suffering to
she has long been excruciated by an undiagnosed pain in her knee
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of excruciating
Irene Wright, Miami Herald, 21 Jan. 2025
The excruciating pain before Wekem’s stem cell transplant had made that impossible.
—Jason Kane, NBC News, 18 Jan. 2025
Please note that this death was excruciating for everyone involved, including me.
—Lincee Ray, EW.com, 18 Jan. 2025
This injury not only caused excruciating pain but also forced her into a desperate situation where humans, slower and less elusive than her natural prey, became her sole means of survival.
—Scott Travers, Forbes, 16 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for excruciating
Adjective
Just minutes into a flight, a 52-year-old woman forced an emergency landing because of excruciating pain in her eye, German doctors said.
—Irene Wright, Miami Herald, 21 Jan. 2025
The excruciating pain before Wekem’s stem cell transplant had made that impossible.
—Jason Kane, NBC News, 18 Jan. 2025
Please note that this death was excruciating for everyone involved, including me.
—Lincee Ray, EW.com, 18 Jan. 2025
This injury not only caused excruciating pain but also forced her into a desperate situation where humans, slower and less elusive than her natural prey, became her sole means of survival.
—Scott Travers, Forbes, 16 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for excruciating
Recent Examples of Synonyms for excruciating
Adjective
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Hackman’s searing turn as the hyper, gum-smacking Doyle in the documentary-style French Connection distinguished him as a leading man.—
Duane Byrge,
The Hollywood Reporter,
27 Feb. 2025
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Bouchard’s five-on-five on-ice outscoring is a searing total.—
Allan Mitchell,
The Athletic,
24 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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Whether a client hires a single architect to design a house or a team to work on a downtown plan with multiple community stakeholders, the architect-client relationship is rarely one of a painful struggle.—
Matt Shaw,
Forbes,
28 Feb. 2025
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Throughout her childhood, Dee Dee subjected her Gypsy-Rose to years of painful medical procedures that were not needed.—
Angel Saunders,
People.com,
28 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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This is a performance that entwines intense physicality with simmering determination, and a sense of humor.—
Stephanie Zacharek,
TIME,
24 Feb. 2025
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In the background of a Gaza ceasefire, Israel has steadily escalated an intense military operation in Palestinian cities in the West Bank, killing dozens and displacing tens of thousands of residents.—
Mick Krever,
CNN,
24 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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Even better, these expert tips should make easing into healthier phone habits much more manageable (and way less torturous).—
Jenna Ryu,
SELF,
19 Jan. 2025
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Fans rushed the floor after OSU secured the upset, a joyous celebration on a campus that’s been through the college realignment wringer, a torturous process that ultimately killed the Beavers’ conference.—
Lindsay Schnell,
The Athletic,
16 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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Ties during Trump’s first term One of the hallmarks of the first Trump Administration was a tougher stance towards China compared to his predecessors, through tit-for-tat tariffs and an Indo-Pacific strategy that aimed to curb Beijing’s growing influence in the Western Pacific.—
Chad de Guzman,
TIME,
27 Feb. 2025
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How to Bet Timberwolves vs. Lakers Following up a game like Tuesday's would be tough for the Wolves under any circumstances, but with Edwards battling a calf injury and DiVincenzo potentially sidelined, beating the Lakers in L.A. will be that much more difficult.—
David Faris,
Newsweek,
27 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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Unlike Western cleansers, which often rely on harsh surfactants or astringent ingredients, Korean ones maintain the skin’s moisture barrier and natural pH balance, says Cho.—
Denise Primbet,
Glamour,
28 Feb. 2025
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Her lyric vocal writing contends with harsh reality, but her style is never far from profound rapture.—
Mark Swed,
Los Angeles Times,
28 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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In particular, teams deploying fiber-optic drones that send and receive signals via millimeters-thick wires rather than via radio—a method of control that helps the operators circumvent intensive Ukrainian radio jamming.—
David Axe,
Forbes,
19 Feb. 2025
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When babies born at Carroll need intensive neonatal care, they are sent to Sinai.—
Tom Zirpoli,
Baltimore Sun,
18 Feb. 2025
Verb
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An audacious plan In the mid-1980s, global health agencies were otherwise occupied and heads of state largely overlooked the illness afflicting millions of their citizens.—
Sam Mednick,
Chicago Tribune,
30 Dec. 2024
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The United States now suffers from twin pathologies—one afflicting the health of its citizens and the other the health of its political system.—
Thomas J. Bollyky,
Foreign Affairs,
30 Jan. 2020
Cite this Entry
“Excruciating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/excruciating. Accessed 4 Mar. 2025.
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