AGONIZES Synonyms: 136 Similar and Opposite Words

agonizes

verb

present tense third-person singular of agonize

as in persecutes

to cause persistent suffering to got into more trouble, further agonizing her poor mother

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in grieves

to feel deep sadness or mental pain agonized for days over whether she'd done the right thing

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Example Sentences

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Recent Examples of agonizes Her ex-husband, a good father, refuses to move the boy to the town and Eden agonizes about taking the boy from his friends and school in the Twin Cities. —

Mary Ann Grossmann, Twin Cities, 12 Apr. 2026 McClarnon, 59, not only stars but produces, directs and agonizes about getting it right. —

Stephen Schaefer, Boston Herald, 15 Feb. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for agonizes

Verb

China, which jails human rights activists in Hong Kong, persecutes Uyghurs, has killed hundreds of thousands of Tibetans and has committed genocide against the Falun Gong, is on the UN Human Rights Council.

— Voice of the People, New York Daily News, 18 Feb. 2026
In Russia, the civilian repressive apparatus persecutes the military, which leaps at every chance for revenge.

— Stephen Kotkin, Foreign Affairs, 16 Dec. 2025