as in weeping
expressing or suggesting mourning
one look at his agonized, tearful eyes and it was clear that something was terribly wrong
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in plagued
to cause persistent suffering to
got into more trouble, further agonizing her poor mother
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in grieved
to feel deep sadness or mental pain
agonized for days over whether she'd done the right thing
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of agonized
Boone Ashworth, WIRED, 10 Jan. 2025
This time, Trump was not the subject of agonized debate among the billionaires.
—Susan B. Glasser, The New Yorker, 18 Oct. 2024
There’s ongoing catharsis in the powerful expression of this sometimes personally agonized material, whoever wrote all of it, as the sing-and scream-alongs would indicate.
—Chris Willman, Variety, 13 Sep. 2024
Researchers suggest that the woman may have been afflicted by a rare muscle reaction at the moment of death that immortalized her agonized expression.
—Margherita Bassi, Smithsonian Magazine, 2 Aug. 2024
See All Example Sentences for agonized
Adjective
Those waiting to hear whether their houses have burned are living in agonized dread.
—Boone Ashworth, WIRED, 10 Jan. 2025
This time, Trump was not the subject of agonized debate among the billionaires.
—Susan B. Glasser, The New Yorker, 18 Oct. 2024
There’s ongoing catharsis in the powerful expression of this sometimes personally agonized material, whoever wrote all of it, as the sing-and scream-alongs would indicate.
—Chris Willman, Variety, 13 Sep. 2024
Researchers suggest that the woman may have been afflicted by a rare muscle reaction at the moment of death that immortalized her agonized expression.
—Margherita Bassi, Smithsonian Magazine, 2 Aug. 2024
See All Example Sentences for agonized
Recent Examples of Synonyms for agonized
Adjective
-
And every day, across from them, outside the clinic, about to enter or just leaving, there were women hugging each other and weeping.—
David Mamet,
National Review,
11 Aug. 2022
-
The show manages to stay on the brink — always laughing, never quite weeping — for its entire length.—
Helen Shaw,
Vulture,
8 Dec. 2021
Verb
-
This particular finding presents a more nuanced framing of gun violence and challenges dominant narratives about Chicago’s violence that have plagued the city’s reputation for decades.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
3 Sep. 2025
-
The study also pinpointed a bacterium that plagued these colossal ice age creatures.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
2 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
His father grieved by never mentioning her name again in the house, and the fatherly approval Bono craved was in short supply.—
Mike Fleming Jr,
Deadline,
30 Aug. 2025
-
Angelina Murrieta watched as her 16-year-old daughter grieved with friends during the vigil for her fallen classmate.—
Jose R. Gonzalez,
AZCentral.com,
23 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
Similarly, the discreetly mournful compositions of Giorgio Matteo and Aki Oliviero’s score hover politely on the periphery of the (in)action, careful not to intrude.—
Jessica Kiang,
Variety,
4 Sep. 2025
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His narration is a constant pleasure — mournful, wry, and suffused with a world-weary poetry.—
Leila Latif,
IndieWire,
31 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
His deportation to El Salvador violated a 2019 court order that protected him from being deported to his home country because of concerns that he’d be persecuted by violent gangs.—
Marlene Lenthang,
NBC news,
25 Aug. 2025
-
Criminals are to be persecuted.—
Tommy Trenchard,
NPR,
23 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
Several world leaders mourned the accident, including European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.—
Ross O'Keefe,
The Washington Examiner,
4 Sep. 2025
-
In 1973, the Tree of Ténéré, a 300-year-old acacia in the Sahara Desert, was mourned following its destruction by a truck driver, alleged to have been drunk.—
Ellen Walker,
JSTOR Daily,
3 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Hill’s 21-year-old son told WXYZ that his whole family is heartbroken.—
Jennifer Rodriguez,
Kansas City Star,
4 Sep. 2025
-
Over the past half-decade, the Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival has been called off three times, leaving behind unrealized lineups, swampy farmlands, and heartbroken fans.—
Audrey Gibbs,
The Tennessean,
3 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
But Thomas was afflicted by health troubles on the 26-56 Nets last year.—
Alex Kirschenbaum,
MSNBC Newsweek,
3 Sep. 2025
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The World Health Organization states that in 2021 alone, nearly 57 million people were afflicted with some form of dementia.—
Forbes.com,
Forbes.com,
31 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Agonized.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/agonized. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.
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