excruciating
adjective
ex·cru·ci·at·ing
ik-ˈskrü-shē-ˌā-tiŋ 
1
: causing great pain or anguish : agonizing
the nation's most excruciating dilemma—
W. H. Ferry
W. H. Ferry2
: very intense : extreme
excruciating pain
Examples of excruciating in a Sentence
I have an excruciating headache.
an excruciating moment of embarrassment
They described their vacation in excruciating detail.
Recent Examples on the Web
But now, after spending roughly a year in jail — much of it in excruciating physical pain due to complications from leg-extension surgery — friends say Iza has reconnected with his family and rediscovered his Muslim faith.
—Jesse Hyde, Rolling Stone, 21 Oct. 2025
Every great playoff game has a loser, and the Toronto Blue Jays suffered a particularly excruciating defeat on Friday night.
—Jackson Roberts, MSNBC Newsweek, 18 Oct. 2025
The heaviness, the burning, the pain in my abdomen (which feels eerily similar but far more intense than a UTI at the same time) is excruciating.
—Via Harvest Books, Literary Hub, 15 Oct. 2025
Due to the nature of the explosion, recovery efforts have proven to be excruciating for victims’ families and investigators working to clear the area, potentially detonating and recovering any other explosives in the vicinity and using DNA to identify remains, officials have said.
—Alisha Ebrahimji, CNN Money, 13 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for excruciating
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Jesse Hyde, Rolling Stone, 21 Oct. 2025
Every great playoff game has a loser, and the Toronto Blue Jays suffered a particularly excruciating defeat on Friday night.
—Jackson Roberts, MSNBC Newsweek, 18 Oct. 2025
The heaviness, the burning, the pain in my abdomen (which feels eerily similar but far more intense than a UTI at the same time) is excruciating.
—Via Harvest Books, Literary Hub, 15 Oct. 2025
Due to the nature of the explosion, recovery efforts have proven to be excruciating for victims’ families and investigators working to clear the area, potentially detonating and recovering any other explosives in the vicinity and using DNA to identify remains, officials have said.
—Alisha Ebrahimji, CNN Money, 13 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for excruciating
Cite this Entry
“Excruciating.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/excruciating. Accessed 23 Oct. 2025.
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