heartbreaking

adjective

heart·​break·​ing ˈhärt-ˌbrā-kiŋ 

1

: causing intense sorrow or distress

heartbreaking news

a heartbreaking defeat

2

: producing an intense emotional reaction or response

heartbreaking beauty

heartbreakingly

ˈhärt-ˌbrā-kiŋ-lē 

adverb

a heartbreakingly tragic movie

Synonyms of heartbreaking

• sad
• depressing
• pathetic

Examples of heartbreaking in a Sentence

She wrote a heartbreaking story about the death of her grandfather.

It was heartbreaking to know that there was nothing I could do.

The team suffered another heartbreaking defeat.

Recent Examples on the Web

Back in 2022, the news of his son Anthony's stage-four cancer diagnosis was even more heartbreaking. — Christine Sloan, CBS News, 17 Aug. 2026

There’s no real villain to denounce or berate, and that is perhaps the most heartbreaking part of all. — Amanda Petrusich, New Yorker, 16 Aug. 2026

Those teams experienced heartbreaking home playoff losses against the Pittsburgh Steelers, Tennessee Titans and Patriots. — Pj Green august 13, Kansas City Star, 13 Aug. 2026

After initial attempts at therapy had no effect, the boy’s parents made the heartbreaking decision to remove his breathing tube to end his suffering. — Beth Mole, ArsTechnica, 12 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1591, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Rhymes for heartbreaking

• awaking
• backbreaking
• bookmaking
• breathtaking
• brickmaking
• caretaking
• dressmaking
• filmmaking
• forsaking
• glassmaking
• groundbreaking
• haymaking