as in bitterly
with feelings of bitterness or grief
painfully she recounted the difficult relationship she had with her mother
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of painfully
Eastwood and Fitzgerald are barely in the movie long enough to register, Williams’ 30-something mom lacks any actual spirit, and Franco’s painfully earnest single dad can’t decide whether to keep his glasses on and off.
—
Brian Truitt, USA Today, 22 Oct. 2025
Every New York Yankees fan is painfully aware of the rough season starting shortstop Anthony Volpe had in Year 3 as a big-leaguer.
—Jackson Roberts, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Oct. 2025
But in fact, Ragtime is painfully connected to the present moment.
—Shania Russell, Entertainment Weekly, 17 Oct. 2025
The cases—some going back six years—have been painfully slow in working their way through the courts.
—Luke Cyphers, Sportico.com, 17 Oct. 2025
The cases — some going back six years — have been painfully slow in working their way through the courts.
—Luke Cyphers, Rolling Stone, 17 Oct. 2025
That’s especially true, painfully so, for recent college graduates.
—Phil Blair, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 Oct. 2025
That’s another high hurdle, because the ACA credits split Republicans painfully.
—Burgess Everett, semafor.com, 9 Oct. 2025
For much of the season, the Mariners’ offense looked painfully thin.
—Tyler Kepner, New York Times, 8 Oct. 2025
Brian Truitt, USA Today, 22 Oct. 2025
Every New York Yankees fan is painfully aware of the rough season starting shortstop Anthony Volpe had in Year 3 as a big-leaguer.
—Jackson Roberts, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Oct. 2025
But in fact, Ragtime is painfully connected to the present moment.
—Shania Russell, Entertainment Weekly, 17 Oct. 2025
The cases—some going back six years—have been painfully slow in working their way through the courts.
—Luke Cyphers, Sportico.com, 17 Oct. 2025
The cases — some going back six years — have been painfully slow in working their way through the courts.
—Luke Cyphers, Rolling Stone, 17 Oct. 2025
That’s especially true, painfully so, for recent college graduates.
—Phil Blair, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 Oct. 2025
That’s another high hurdle, because the ACA credits split Republicans painfully.
—Burgess Everett, semafor.com, 9 Oct. 2025
For much of the season, the Mariners’ offense looked painfully thin.
—Tyler Kepner, New York Times, 8 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for painfully
Adverb
-
Taylor makes a persuasive case for how artists can grow, if incrementally and maybe bitterly, amid so much numbing digital noise.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
16 Oct. 2025
-
Fede knows the truth, but Roberto doesn’t, and Fede has held that over Antonio ever since, with Antonio bitterly blaming himself for his wife’s death.—
Dave Nemetz,
TVLine,
12 Oct. 2025
Adverb
-
That’s because, sadly, many bat populations have declined in recent years due to factors including habitat loss, wind turbines, and white nose syndrome (WNS), a devastating fungal disease which disrupts their natural hibernation cycles.—
Arricca Elin SanSone,
Southern Living,
21 Oct. 2025
-
But, sadly for us, relationships are a bit messier than probability would have it.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
20 Oct. 2025
Adverb
-
In police bodycam footage shown in The Perfect Neighbor, Lorincz claims that Owens had been banging on her locked front door so hard that her house started shaking.—
Allison DeGrushe,
Entertainment Weekly,
20 Oct. 2025
-
Every day, we are inundated with imagery urging us to work harder, buy more … and never stop.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
20 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Painfully.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/painfully. Accessed 23 Oct. 2025.
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