Synonyms of anguished

anguished 1 of 2

adjective

ˈaŋ-gwisht 

as in weeping

expressing or suggesting mourning

an anguished cry

the military's explanation of the accident did nothing to console the anguished widow

Synonyms & Similar Words

• weeping
• mournful
• heartbroken
• funeral
• grieving
• wailing
• bitter
• agonized
• tearful
• sorrowful
• sad
• plaintive
• aching
• melancholy
• unhappy
• regretful
• doleful
• sorry
• lamentable
• lugubrious
• crying
• rueful
• depressed
• dolorous
• somber
• plangent
• woeful
• funereal
• bleak
• dark
• bewailing
• deploring
• morbid
• bemoaning
• dejected
• disconsolate
• keening
• heartsick
• elegiac
• dispirited
• dolesome
• pathetic
• despondent
• inconsolable
• miserable
• downcast
• crestfallen
• moody
• forlorn
• groaning
• woebegone
• darkening
• gloomy
• careworn
• brokenhearted
• desolate
• moaning
• glum
• bleeding
• suffering
• howling
• sullen
• piteous
• morose
• black
• downhearted
• cheerless
• gray
• pessimistic
• heartsore
• wretched
• joyless
• bawling
• low-spirited
• dirgelike
• saturnine
• dismal
• low
• comfortless
• dreary
• triste
• yammering

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• happy
• triumphant
• joyful
• cheerful
• delighted
• smiling
• bright
• cheery
• laughing
• joyous
• rejoicing
• exulting
• merry
• blissful
• mirthful
• buoyant
• hopeful
• optimistic
• blithe
• jolly
• encouraging
• lighthearted
• glorying
• cheering
• ecstatic
• rapturous
• giddy
• rhapsodic
• euphoric
• heady
• blithesome
• jocund
• exhilarated
• elated

anguished

2 of 2

verb

past tense of anguish

1

as in plagued

to cause persistent suffering to

she was anguished by the fear that her sons would die in the war

Synonyms & Similar Words

• plagued
• persecuted
• afflicted
• tortured
• tormented
• agonized
• besieged
• cursed
• troubled
• attacked
• bothered
• harrowed
• bedeviled
• beset
• racked
• stung
• disturbed
• overwhelmed
• excruciated
• exasperated
• annoyed
• struck
• worried
• irritated
• aggravated
• agitated
• pursued
• distressed
• pained
• vexed
• assailed
• upset
• grieved
• harried
• harassed
• oppressed
• disquieted
• dogged
• peeved
• irked
• flustered
• perturbed
• stressed
• hounded
• hurt
• discomforted
• badgered
• riled
• nettled
• molested
• tried
• victimized
• chafed
• pestered
• griped
• stabbed
• strained
• rasped
• discomposed
• bugged
• grated
• rode
• piqued
• galled
• tyrannized
• crushed
• put out
• overpowered
• pricked
• martyred
• smarted
• smote
• panged
• wrung
• got
• hagrode

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• assisted
• helped
• aided
• relieved
• abetted
• delivered
• released
• comforted
• contented
• soothed
• consoled
• quieted
• reprieved
• solaced
• succored

2

as in grieved

to feel deep sadness or mental pain

I anguished over the loss of my father for years afterwards

Synonyms & Similar Words

• grieved
• mourned
• ached
• sighed
• agonized
• cried
• sorrowed
• sobbed
• wept
• suffered
• hurt
• tormented
• groaned
• tortured
• bled
• ate one's heart out
• moaned
• smarted
• bewailed
• tore one's hair
• lamented
• howled
• longed (for)
• racked
• blubbered
• deplored
• bemoaned
• regretted
• wailed
• bawled
• keened
• pined (away)
• languished
• yowled
• rued
• yammered
• took on

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• laughed
• delighted
• cheered
• rejoiced
• exulted
• ravished
• beamed
• triumphed
• gloried
• crowed
• assured
• comforted
• reassured
• sympathized
• consoled
• soothed
• joyed
• solaced
• commiserated

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of anguished

Adjective

The creator of vivid, indelible fantasies for women to try on and to embody was also a fragile and anguished man, troubled throughout his life by alcohol, drug dependency, and bouts of debilitating depression. — Naomi Fry, New Yorker, 1 Aug. 2026

Drew Bos, last seen at OPFT as Romeo’s buddy Benvolio in 2024, stars as the Danish prince whose visions of his late father (Charls Sedgwick Hall) prompt an anguished internal reckoning over his bitter desire for revenge and suicidal thoughts. — Emily McClanathan, Chicago Tribune, 9 July 2026

Verb

There is a mood to these stories, sardonic and anguished in turn, that gets under your skin. — Emma Alpern, Vulture, 2 Dec. 2025

Insert anguished grimace emoji here. — Teri Sforza, Oc Register, 24 Nov. 2025