harrowing
adjective
har·row·ing
ˈher-ə-wiŋ 
ˈha-rə-
: acutely distressing or painful
a harrowing experience
Mr. Wu's work in a coal mine was particularly harrowing.—
Charles Horner
Charles Horner
harrowingly
adverb
Examples of harrowing in a Sentence
a harrowing portrayal of the ravages of war
the harrowing amputations without any anesthetic that soldiers and sailors once were forced to endure
Recent Examples on the Web
Shaina Montiel says her mother stills cries thinking about her harrowing experience with hantavirus at age 5, which, according to the CDC, can have a fatality rate up to 38%, depending on the type of syndrome caused by it.
—Natalie Neysa Alund, USA Today, 12 May 2026
In one particularly harrowing example, the report details three separate incidents of rape at the site of the Nova Music Festival near the Gaza perimeter, citing a survivor who was hiding in the immediate vicinity of the attack.
—Ivana Kottasová, CNN Money, 12 May 2026
The telling is harrowing, but also humorous at times, and achieves an emotional register that had me, essentially, transfixed.
—John Warner, Chicago Tribune, 9 May 2026
During the trial, which kicked off in March, Moïse’s widow, Martine, delivered harrowing testimony about the night roughly two dozen foreign mercenaries, mostly Colombians, stormed their home near Port-au-Prince.
—Alexandra Koch, FOXNews.com, 8 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for harrowing
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Natalie Neysa Alund, USA Today, 12 May 2026
In one particularly harrowing example, the report details three separate incidents of rape at the site of the Nova Music Festival near the Gaza perimeter, citing a survivor who was hiding in the immediate vicinity of the attack.
—Ivana Kottasová, CNN Money, 12 May 2026
The telling is harrowing, but also humorous at times, and achieves an emotional register that had me, essentially, transfixed.
—John Warner, Chicago Tribune, 9 May 2026
During the trial, which kicked off in March, Moïse’s widow, Martine, delivered harrowing testimony about the night roughly two dozen foreign mercenaries, mostly Colombians, stormed their home near Port-au-Prince.
—Alexandra Koch, FOXNews.com, 8 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for harrowing
Cite this Entry
“Harrowing.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/harrowing. Accessed 18 May. 2026.
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