1
as in wrenching
intensely or unbearably painful
he finally visited the doctor when the pain became too excruciating to ignore
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2
as in searing
difficult to endure
the excruciating heat that the settlers faced as they crossed the deserts of the Southwest
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3
as in painful
hard to accept or bear especially emotionally
most excruciating of all was the endless wait for news of any survivors of the plane crash
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4
as in intense
extreme in degree, power, or effect
the excruciating grief they felt upon the loss of their dear grandfather
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as in plaguing
to cause persistent suffering to
she has long been excruciated by an undiagnosed pain in her knee
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of excruciating
Mike Fleming Jr, Deadline, 19 Sep. 2025
Not that that made the experience any less excruciating for Young in the moment.
—Adam Grosbard, Oc Register, 19 Sep. 2025
These entries, laying out a monthslong plot in excruciating detail, revealed multiple visits to Tops Friendly Markets to survey the store’s layout and analyze a Google graph feature for the location’s busiest times.
—Mia Cathell, The Washington Examiner, 18 Sep. 2025
One from the spring of 1977 is excruciating in its details of my humiliation at the hands of a gallerist at what was then the most important photography gallery in New York.
—Literary Hub, 11 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for excruciating
Adjective
Did working so closely with his son remove the things that made starring in films excruciating enough to prompt his father to walk away for nearly a decade?
—Mike Fleming Jr, Deadline, 19 Sep. 2025
Not that that made the experience any less excruciating for Young in the moment.
—Adam Grosbard, Oc Register, 19 Sep. 2025
These entries, laying out a monthslong plot in excruciating detail, revealed multiple visits to Tops Friendly Markets to survey the store’s layout and analyze a Google graph feature for the location’s busiest times.
—Mia Cathell, The Washington Examiner, 18 Sep. 2025
One from the spring of 1977 is excruciating in its details of my humiliation at the hands of a gallerist at what was then the most important photography gallery in New York.
—Literary Hub, 11 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for excruciating
Recent Examples of Synonyms for excruciating
Adjective
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His own divorce from actress Jennifer Jason Leigh informed his Oscar-winning Marriage Story (2019), a searing look at love unraveling.—
Scott Roxborough,
HollywoodReporter,
3 Oct. 2025
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And McConaughey, as a nervy reluctant hero, steers the searing, intense narrative about normal people living through the most hellish of circumstances.—
Brian Truitt,
USA Today,
2 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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The result is the year’s most daring TV performance, rooted in a painful, just barely recognizable humanity.—
Daniel D'Addario,
Variety,
30 Sep. 2025
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The company said its offering, akin to online tax preparation software, could help students maximize financial aid while making the application process less painful.—
CNN Money,
CNN Money,
30 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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During periods of intense rainfall, the risk of flooding increases, particularly in low-lying and flood-prone areas.—
CA Weather Bot,
Sacbee.com,
4 Oct. 2025
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Safdie perceptively locates the protagonist’s troubling inner contradictions—the atavistic fury that drives him to compete and the intense self-control that competition demands—but dramatizes such outer crises as opioid addiction and conflict with his girlfriend (Emily Blunt) only schematically.—
Vince Aletti,
New Yorker,
3 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Bersten, 31, reveals he’s been pleased with the Dynasty actress’s work ethic in rehearsal despite the injuries plaguing her.—
Latoya Gayle,
PEOPLE,
29 Sep. 2025
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Pearsall appeared to have reaggravated his knee injury that was plaguing him all week, and he was pulled from the game.—
James Brizuela,
MSNBC Newsweek,
29 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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The longtime actor and multi-faceted filmmaker crafts an unhinged, go-for-broke performance as a legendary quarterback putting his potential heir apparent (Tyriq Withers) through a psychologically torturous training camp.—
Brian Truitt,
USA Today,
18 Sep. 2025
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Season 2 reveals the main characters were locked up in a torturous adult rehabilitation center, but have now been allowed to re-enroll at Godolkin University.—
Skyler Trepel,
PEOPLE,
17 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Lammens was perhaps fortunate to escape sanction then (Stuart Atwell booked the forward for diving), but this was a valuable occasion ahead of tougher tests, beginning at Anfield.—
Laurie Whitwell,
New York Times,
5 Oct. 2025
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There will be some tough picking in there, but typically the predicting business gets a little easier in region play.—
Tyler Palmateer,
Nashville Tennessean,
4 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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The triumphant narrative began to fray when exceedingly harsh lockdown measures could no longer contain the spread of the virus, and the staggering human cost in the name of protecting lives defied all logic.—
Yangyang Cheng,
NPR,
4 Oct. 2025
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There are no easy fixes, so figuring out how to cushion the harsh impact will be the basis of negotiations with other parties in the Japanese legislature, the Diet.—
Jeff Kingston,
Time,
4 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Over the next three days, Stafford and Hanton will lead you through an intensive, interactive bushcraft school.—
Mark Ellwood,
Robb Report,
5 Oct. 2025
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In India, the government has begun pushing to decarbonize the iron and steel sector, one of the world’s most emissions-intensive industries, driven as much by resource and pollution pressures as by diplomacy.—
Felicia Jackson,
Forbes.com,
3 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Excruciating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/excruciating. Accessed 6 Oct. 2025.
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