1
as in painful
hard to accept or bear especially emotionally
it was a tormenting moment as they helplessly watched the other team score in the final seconds of the game
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in torturing
intensely or unbearably painful
a tormenting injury
Synonyms & Similar Words
as in plaguing
to cause persistent suffering to
he was tormented by nightmares about the accident
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of tormenting
Janelle Ash, FOXNews.com, 12 Sep. 2025
As her condition worsens, her fiancé’s brooding cousin becomes an unwilling participant in the evil forces tormenting her.
—Clare Mulroy, USA Today, 31 Aug. 2025
This demon, for want of a better word, seems to relish tormenting people.
—Richard Edwards, Space.com, 7 Aug. 2025
Verb
Baldoni later accused Lively of tormenting him, his family and colleagues in a lawsuit filed in the Southern District of New York in January.
—Janelle Ash, FOXNews.com, 12 Sep. 2025
As her condition worsens, her fiancé’s brooding cousin becomes an unwilling participant in the evil forces tormenting her.
—Clare Mulroy, USA Today, 31 Aug. 2025
This demon, for want of a better word, seems to relish tormenting people.
—Richard Edwards, Space.com, 7 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tormenting
Adjective
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In other words, the more painful the cry sounded, the warmer the listener's face became—and the effect was the same for both men and women.—
Daniella Gray,
MSNBC Newsweek,
16 Sep. 2025
-
The Queen could have surgery to remove bunions, but has been warned against it as the surgery is too painful.—
Lizzie Lanuza,
StyleCaster,
16 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Large swaths of eastern Colorado have evaded the drought plaguing most of the state west of 25.—
John Meyer,
Denver Post,
10 Sep. 2025
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The group discussed several issues still plaguing the towing industry and vehicle owners after the legislature overhauled the state’s more than 100-year-old law in May.—
Dave Altimari,
ProPublica,
9 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Sena was crying in pain, and so were her new owners, who even questioned whether keeping her alive was cruel.—
Maria Azzurra Volpe,
MSNBC Newsweek,
20 Sep. 2025
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Directed by Oliver Laxe, who’s been making waves at Cannes for years, the movie is funny and warm in parts, cruel and cold in others.—
Shirley Li,
The Atlantic,
20 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The former human-rights lawyer entered on a tourist visa and filed for political asylum in October of that year, claiming the governments that succeeded Correa were persecuting him.—
Syra Ortiz Blanes,
Miami Herald,
12 Sep. 2025
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For 25 years, Chavism has co-opted Venezuela's infrastructure for its own enrichment, persecuting journalists and opposition, wrecking the economy, and leaving its citizens in poverty.—
Kristina Foltz,
MSNBC Newsweek,
4 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Within the film’s compact running time, writer-director Ben Hania traces the fraught and torturous hours of January 29, 2024, when Palestine Red Crescent volunteers in the West Bank tried to calm a terrified 6-year-old girl and get an ambulance to her in Gaza.—
Sheri Linden,
HollywoodReporter,
3 Sep. 2025
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From the almost humorous to the truly torturous, being plunked into unknown wilderness in total isolation—which is what happens on Alone—results in all manner of strange mental phenomenon.—
Woniya Thibeault,
Outside,
26 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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For athletes across all sports, few experiences are as agonizing as being forced to leave competition with a sudden muscle cramp.—
Michael Hales,
The Conversation,
9 Sep. 2025
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The crux of this tale is now an agonizing decision that Joan has to make, egged on by her rather flighty coordinator Ryan (John Early), who is competing against Anna to make this all work.—
Pete Hammond,
Deadline,
8 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Those who dismissed intersectionality saw such policies as little more than allowing the disadvantaged to commit crimes without consequences to make up for past inequities, afflicting crime victims from the same disadvantaged communities.—
John Scott Lewinski,
The Washington Examiner,
5 Sep. 2025
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Americans live shorter lives than their European equivalents, McClatchy News reported in April, but the trend of stagnant life expectancy appears to be afflicting European nations the same, according to the study.—
Irene Wright,
Miami Herald,
2 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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These findings highlight an urgent need to shield stem cells from the harsh realities of space.—
Pranjal Malewar,
New Atlas,
20 Sep. 2025
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Rain is coming, penciled in for an hour or two from now, and a harsh British wind is flinging leaves off branches and cloaking the countryside with something that smells dungy and damp.—
Rob Picheta,
CNN Money,
20 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Tormenting.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tormenting. Accessed 21 Sep. 2025.
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