1
as in nightmare
a situation or state that causes great suffering and unhappiness
waiting all those hours to hear if he'd survived the plane crash was pure agony
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in distress
a state of great suffering of body or mind
the agony of never knowing what happened to her son
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in explosion
a sudden intense expression of strong feeling
the announcement that the war was over unleashed a mass agony of joy
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of agony
If the fates are kind, the Avs have learned at least two things from the sheer agony of the past weekend.
—
Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 7 May 2025
At this point in the narrative, when Mike is sentenced to 14 months jail time, more conventional addiction dramas would dig into the trauma of incarceration and the agony of substance withdrawal.
—David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 17 May 2025
One young man described the particular agony of being placed carelessly in a wheelchair and forced to sit for hours atop his testicles.
—Sarah Zhang, The Atlantic, 16 May 2025
All while hearing jokes, arguments, and absorbing how grown men handled the joy of victory and the agony of defeat.
—Jason Quick, New York Times, 15 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for agony
Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 7 May 2025
At this point in the narrative, when Mike is sentenced to 14 months jail time, more conventional addiction dramas would dig into the trauma of incarceration and the agony of substance withdrawal.
—David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 17 May 2025
One young man described the particular agony of being placed carelessly in a wheelchair and forced to sit for hours atop his testicles.
—Sarah Zhang, The Atlantic, 16 May 2025
All while hearing jokes, arguments, and absorbing how grown men handled the joy of victory and the agony of defeat.
—Jason Quick, New York Times, 15 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for agony
Recent Examples of Synonyms for agony
Noun
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Left-hander Reid Detmers, whose three-game nightmare stretch a month ago began with a game in Seattle, struck out two in a scoreless inning, including Mariners star Cal Raleigh.—
Jeff Fletcher,
Oc Register,
7 June 2025
-
For rule-followers like me, the prankster types were a nightmare.—
Stephanie Sengwe,
People.com,
7 June 2025
Noun
-
The report highlights research on young adults that shows that trans students who participate in collegiate sports are less likely to experience distress, self-harm and suicidal thoughts.—
Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy,
USA Today,
6 June 2025
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That places an onerous burden on Henson, doing her considerable best trying to sustain a role whose Job-like travails crank the distress level to 11 too soon.—
Dennis Harvey,
Variety,
6 June 2025
Noun
-
So these quests march on even as the crack of explosions grows louder.—
Carole V. Bell,
Los Angeles Times,
3 June 2025
-
Since March, the southeast crater showed signs of activity with smaller explosions and moderate lava flows.—
David Bressan,
Forbes.com,
3 June 2025
Noun
-
In the studio, a bad idea can be put out of its misery within a few minutes.—
Ethan Shanfeld,
Variety,
30 May 2025
-
The Athletic reflects on their 2024-25 efforts, culminating in a 14th-place finish, that caused more misery than joy.—
Roshane Thomas,
New York Times,
28 May 2025
Noun
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Among the thousands left in anguish is Sasha Escalante, a 44-year-old Venezuelan radio producer living in Miami.—
Verónica Egui Brito,
Miami Herald,
5 June 2025
-
Criminalizing them can lead to extended mental anguish.—
Sophie Clark,
MSNBC Newsweek,
3 June 2025
Noun
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Then, just before the neutron star is consumed by the black hole, these waves turn into a powerful blast, emitting a burst of radio waves known as a fast radio burst (FRB).—
Sharmila Kuthunur,
Space.com,
5 June 2025
-
Several videos shared on TikTok by Khalifa show groups of Palestinians lying flat on the ground and taking cover from ongoing bursts of automatic gunfire.—
Jeremy Diamond,
CNN Money,
4 June 2025
Noun
-
As many as 40,000 Ravensbrück inmates died of starvation, disease, torture, shooting, lethal injections, medical experiments, and from lethal gas.—
Olivia B. Waxman,
Time,
4 June 2025
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Secretary Noem argues the program has been abused, but immigration advocacy groups have warned that many immigrants would be vulnerable to abuse, torture, or arrest should they be forced to return home.—
Dan Gooding
Amanda Castro,
MSNBC Newsweek,
3 June 2025
Noun
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Winant crystallizes this idea of crossing a indescribable threshold through her discussion and analysis of masochism, an intrinsic component of athletic practice that intertwines physical pleasure with pain.—
Jessica Simmons-Reid,
Artforum,
1 June 2025
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The primary question negotiators must settle is how to share the pain of shrinking water supplies between the Upper Basin — which includes Colorado, New Mexico, Wyoming and Utah — and the Lower Basin states of Arizona, California and Nevada.—
Elise Schmelzer,
Denver Post,
31 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Agony.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/agony. Accessed 14 Jun. 2025.
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