harrowing

1 hard to accept or bear especially emotionally a harrowing portrayal of the ravages of war Synonyms of harrowing afflicting, agonizing, cruel, excruciating, galling, grievous, bitter, harsh, heartrending, hurtful, painful, tormenting, torturousWords Related to harrowing insufferable, insupportable, intolerable, unacceptable, unbearable, unendurable, unsupportable; appalling, awful, bad, dire, dreadful, ghastly, horrible, miserable, nasty, rotten, severe, terrible, vile, wretched; acute, extreme, intense, piercingNear Antonyms of harrowing bearable, endurable, supportable, sustainable, tolerable; livable (also liveable), sufferable, survivable; acceptable, allowable, reasonableAntonyms of harrowing gratifying, pleasing, sweet

2 intensely or unbearably painful the harrowing amputations without any anesthetic that soldiers and sailors once were forced to endure Synonyms of harrowing agonizing, excruciating, racking, raging, tormenting, torturing, torturous, wrenchingWords Related to harrowing acute, exquisite, extreme, fierce, intense, vehement, violent; biting, cutting, penetrating, piercing, sharp, shooting, smarting, stabbing, stinging, tearing, tingling