as in extremely
to a great degree
an achingly funny movie
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Recent Examples of achingly
Manville, one of our greatest actors, is achingly real, giving Stella the protective bearing of a wounded soldier.
—
Robert Abele, Los Angeles Times, 20 Feb. 2026
The Halftime Show production featured hundreds of background performers, and each of their looks were so different but so achingly familiar to me.
—Sofía Viera, Allure, 9 Feb. 2026
In the movie’s first dramatic scene, achingly redolent of memory, the brothers—the older is eleven, the younger eight—loll in front of their family’s house, snacking, grousing, playing with paper action figures, trying to fill the solitude and the silence around them with banter and bravado.
—Richard Brody, New Yorker, 6 Feb. 2026
In the years since the murder, Wade said that every milestone in his life has had a void, an achingly empty space where his mother should be.
—Amanda Lee Myers, USA Today, 29 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for achingly
Robert Abele, Los Angeles Times, 20 Feb. 2026
The Halftime Show production featured hundreds of background performers, and each of their looks were so different but so achingly familiar to me.
—Sofía Viera, Allure, 9 Feb. 2026
In the movie’s first dramatic scene, achingly redolent of memory, the brothers—the older is eleven, the younger eight—loll in front of their family’s house, snacking, grousing, playing with paper action figures, trying to fill the solitude and the silence around them with banter and bravado.
—Richard Brody, New Yorker, 6 Feb. 2026
In the years since the murder, Wade said that every milestone in his life has had a void, an achingly empty space where his mother should be.
—Amanda Lee Myers, USA Today, 29 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for achingly
Recent Examples of Synonyms for achingly
Adverb
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Even if well-intentioned, this kind of unsolicited feedback can be extremely frustrating and even hurtful.—
R. Eric Thomas,
Chicago Tribune,
9 Apr. 2026
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After the family moved to America, Crockett was diagnosed with the extremely rare syndactyly-telecanthus-anogenital and renal malformations syndrome, or STAR syndrome, which impacts different parts of the body.—
Megan Vaz,
Sun Sentinel,
9 Apr. 2026
Adverb
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What starts as a playful, casual parlor game suddenly turns incredibly dark, not just because of Emma’s confession but by Rachel’s sudden turn from loyal friend to judgmental scold.—
Bilge Ebiri,
Vulture,
7 Apr. 2026
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Hardside coolers are incredibly heavy when filled, but this one is easy to wheel across parking lots, beaches, and parks.—
Sian Babish,
PEOPLE,
7 Apr. 2026
Adverb
-
Arthur would have looked very different had another actor played him, according to the filmmaker.—
Bailey Richards,
PEOPLE,
12 Apr. 2026
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Over time, my relationship with my wife has become very difficult.—
R. Eric Thomas,
Chicago Tribune,
12 Apr. 2026
Adverb
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All told, the destructive flooding killed at least 136 people along a several-mile stretch of the river, raising questions about how things went so terribly wrong.—
Jim Vertuno,
Chicago Tribune,
8 Apr. 2026
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Things aren’t going terribly well as of late for the Prius.—
Joel Feder,
The Drive,
8 Apr. 2026
Adverb
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The protests appear highly organized, suggesting the involvement of more powerful actors behind the scenes, said Julia Urrunaga, Peru program director at the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA).—
ABC News,
ABC News,
11 Apr. 2026
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Here’s how to put your lint roller to work in unexpected (and highly effective) ways around your home.—
Jamie Cuccinelli,
Martha Stewart,
11 Apr. 2026
Adverb
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Tiffany, the Republican candidate for governor in Wisconsin, cautioned against reading too much into Tuesday’s results.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
9 Apr. 2026
-
The Royals’ offense had its early-season frustrations a year ago before turning it on after the All-Star break — albeit too late to make a playoff run.—
Sam McDowell,
Kansas City Star,
9 Apr. 2026
Adverb
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On the ninety-first day of Zohran Mamdani’s mayoralty, a group of five truly young New Yorkers convened in a physics classroom at the Bronx High School of Science—Mamdani’s alma mater—to discuss his time in office so far.—
Molly Fischer,
New Yorker,
10 Apr. 2026
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Lane, though, not only captures Willy’s ordinariness and his ubiquity, which is no small achievement for so famous an actor, but also his optimism, his foundational, near-Trumpian belief in a coming Very Big Deal for either him or his sons.—
Chris Jones,
New York Daily News,
10 Apr. 2026
Adverb
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But Cleveland State was, in fact, a damned good basketball team, as were most of the double-digit seed winners in NCAA Tournament history.—
Dana O’Neil,
CNN Money,
18 Mar. 2026
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And damned if Love isn’t willing to talk, sometimes candidly and other times in maddeningly vague terms, about all the hell she’s gone through to get to right now.—
David Fear,
Rolling Stone,
28 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Achingly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/achingly. Accessed 12 Apr. 2026.
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