anguished

1 of 2

adjective

an·​guished ˈaŋ-gwisht 

1

: suffering anguish : tormented

the anguished martyrs

2

: expressing anguish : agonized

anguished cries

anguished

2 of 2

past tense and past participle of anguish entry 2

Synonyms of anguished

Adjective

• weeping
• mournful
• heartbroken
• funeral
• grieving
• wailing
• bitter
• agonized

Examples of anguished in a Sentence

Adjective

the military's explanation of the accident did nothing to console the anguished widow

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

At one point, the anguished dad buckled over in pain but was held up by other mourners who quickly took him away. — Rebecca White, New York Daily News, 31 Oct. 2026

Experts interviewed for this story insisted — often in an anguished timbre — that CCS simply must work because decades of delay have foreclosed other paths to a stable climatic future. — Katie Worth, ProPublica, 30 Oct. 2026

The poem’s anguished meditations on love’s savagery and isolation are designed to draw blood. — Merve Emre, New Yorker, 21 Oct. 2026

The financial loss left Walker depressed, anguished and possibly suicidal. — Susanne Rust, Los Angeles Times, 4 Oct. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English anguysched, from past participle of anguischen "to anguish entry 2"

First Known Use

Adjective

1570, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for anguished

• languished