as in bitterly
with feelings of bitterness or grief
agonizingly made the decision to have her beloved cat put to sleep
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Recent Examples of agonizingly
But the rollouts were agonizingly slow.
—
Andrew R. Chow, Time, 6 May 2026
There’s something agonizingly beautiful in waiting—in longing, in steadfast desire.
—Literary Hub, 3 Apr. 2026
The Toronto Blue Jays were agonizingly, excruciatingly close to a World Series triumph.
—Steven Louis Goldstein, New York Times, 25 Mar. 2026
Hammed Animashaun also delivered a cutting take on film junkets with agonizingly enthusiastic influencer interviewers.
—Scott Bryan, Variety, 22 Mar. 2026
But the show, with its scenes at Jefferton’s many buffets, live-action TV cutaways (married news anchors Jan and Wayne Skylar make their first appearance here), and ear for agonizingly awkward small talk, is as floridly Tim and Eric as any of their later projects.
—Eric Vilas-Boas, Vulture, 18 Mar. 2026
And even under ideal conditions, clearing mines is agonizingly slow.
—Eva Roytburg, Fortune, 13 Mar. 2026
The three are sheltering in place at an Airbnb in Dubai, with an uncertain timeline of returning home — and a big disruption to the agonizingly slow immigration process.
—Emma Hurt, AJC.com, 6 Mar. 2026
The crowd turned electric, belting nearly every agonizingly confessional lyric.
—Isabela Raygoza, Billboard, 5 Mar. 2026
Andrew R. Chow, Time, 6 May 2026
There’s something agonizingly beautiful in waiting—in longing, in steadfast desire.
—Literary Hub, 3 Apr. 2026
The Toronto Blue Jays were agonizingly, excruciatingly close to a World Series triumph.
—Steven Louis Goldstein, New York Times, 25 Mar. 2026
Hammed Animashaun also delivered a cutting take on film junkets with agonizingly enthusiastic influencer interviewers.
—Scott Bryan, Variety, 22 Mar. 2026
But the show, with its scenes at Jefferton’s many buffets, live-action TV cutaways (married news anchors Jan and Wayne Skylar make their first appearance here), and ear for agonizingly awkward small talk, is as floridly Tim and Eric as any of their later projects.
—Eric Vilas-Boas, Vulture, 18 Mar. 2026
And even under ideal conditions, clearing mines is agonizingly slow.
—Eva Roytburg, Fortune, 13 Mar. 2026
The three are sheltering in place at an Airbnb in Dubai, with an uncertain timeline of returning home — and a big disruption to the agonizingly slow immigration process.
—Emma Hurt, AJC.com, 6 Mar. 2026
The crowd turned electric, belting nearly every agonizingly confessional lyric.
—Isabela Raygoza, Billboard, 5 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for agonizingly
Adverb
-
But Starmer has been reluctant to reopen a debate that bitterly divided the country.—
Jill Lawless,
Fortune,
11 May 2026
-
Several thousand navvies worked on the railway, living in makeshift camps, and many died in accidents, or from exposure and disease in the bitterly cold winters.—
The Week UK,
TheWeek,
3 May 2026
Adverb
-
With his partner Nick Pihakis, Scott franchised out a few locations of his restaurant across the Southeastern US, but sadly news broke this week that the restaurants are facing multiple lawsuits for unpaid bills and loans.—
Sam Stone,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
8 May 2026
-
To your point, there’s just so many red carpets now, so sadly the moment doesn’t linger anymore.—
José Criales-Unzueta,
Vanity Fair,
6 May 2026
Adverb
-
This has most painfully affected public-school teachers.—
Jill Lepore,
New Yorker,
12 May 2026
-
The Connecticut Sun hoped this season would be different from its dismal record in 2025, but the team’s performance in its 2026 opener against the New York Liberty on Friday night felt painfully familiar.—
Emily Adams,
Hartford Courant,
9 May 2026
Adverb
-
Tarun would tease her, and my mother would look sorrowfully toward Kavitha, as if the two of them now shared some womanly burden.—
Madhuri Vijay,
New Yorker,
16 Nov. 2025
Adverb
-
Our team plays the game pretty hard and always looks for extra bases.—
Paul Sullivan,
Chicago Tribune,
9 May 2026
-
In an individual sport, removed from any team dynamic, the results board made the fairness debate hard to ignore.—
Alejandro Avila OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
9 May 2026
Adverb
-
For their part, Democratic leaders spoke mournfully of limits, of energy shortages, of national decline, of a crisis of confidence itself.—
Rosa Lyster,
Harpers Magazine,
30 Dec. 2025
-
Based on the Dylan Thomas prose poem of the same name, published in 1952, the film lovingly and mournfully depicts the boyhood Christmastime of an old Welshman, tenderly and a tad mischievously embodied by Elliott.—
Sheldon Pearce,
New Yorker,
21 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Agonizingly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/agonizingly. Accessed 15 May. 2026.
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