1
as in sad
causing unhappiness
couldn't bear to see the heartrending photos of victims of the famine
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in painful
hard to accept or bear especially emotionally
a heartrending choice between saving his daughter or his son
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in tragic
of a kind to cause great distress
heartrending memories of all the terrible crimes he'd committed and was sorry for now
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in pathetic
deserving of one's pity
the heartrending sight of a starving child holding out his hands for food
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of heartrending
Mitchell Arens’ cinematography simulates a fugue-like state that mirrors the vortex of grief that pervades through this heartrending film.
—
Randy Myers, Mercury News, 4 Mar. 2026
For Emma, the heartrending decision became clear came the night the police descended on her North Miami neighborhood.
—Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 30 Jan. 2026
His appearance, stopping them in their tracks, is one of the most heartrending moments of any movie.
—John Penner, Los Angeles Times, 8 Jan. 2026
The air was cooler up here, the signage sparing, the views of granite domes and uninterrupted forest vast and heartrending.
—Gloria Liu, Outside Online, 22 Oct. 2025
The film blends documentary and fiction to tell the dramatic and heartrending story of Mongolian herders Davaasuren Dagvasuren and Otgonzaya Dashzeveg’s difficult decision to leave their homelands after the arrival of a powerful and destructive sandstorm.
—Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 23 Sep. 2025
After the latest heartrending horse carriage incident, activists and some Big Apple officials renewed their calls to outlaw the industry.
—Nicholas Williams, New York Daily News, 10 Aug. 2025
In writing this book, Guralnick earned the trust of Parker’s second wife and widow, Loanne, who fills in some heartrending details.
—Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 7 Aug. 2025
Friedland has drawn upon those experiences for her tender and heartrending debut feature, Familiar Touch.
—Lisa Wong MacAbasco, Vogue, 20 June 2025
Randy Myers, Mercury News, 4 Mar. 2026
For Emma, the heartrending decision became clear came the night the police descended on her North Miami neighborhood.
—Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 30 Jan. 2026
His appearance, stopping them in their tracks, is one of the most heartrending moments of any movie.
—John Penner, Los Angeles Times, 8 Jan. 2026
The air was cooler up here, the signage sparing, the views of granite domes and uninterrupted forest vast and heartrending.
—Gloria Liu, Outside Online, 22 Oct. 2025
The film blends documentary and fiction to tell the dramatic and heartrending story of Mongolian herders Davaasuren Dagvasuren and Otgonzaya Dashzeveg’s difficult decision to leave their homelands after the arrival of a powerful and destructive sandstorm.
—Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 23 Sep. 2025
After the latest heartrending horse carriage incident, activists and some Big Apple officials renewed their calls to outlaw the industry.
—Nicholas Williams, New York Daily News, 10 Aug. 2025
In writing this book, Guralnick earned the trust of Parker’s second wife and widow, Loanne, who fills in some heartrending details.
—Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 7 Aug. 2025
Friedland has drawn upon those experiences for her tender and heartrending debut feature, Familiar Touch.
—Lisa Wong MacAbasco, Vogue, 20 June 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for heartrending
Adjective
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There will be keggers, hook-ups, late nights and early mornings, all without shading Greg as a sad old man trying to turn back time.—
Ben Travers,
IndieWire,
5 Mar. 2026
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But none of them can say this, none of them can let their feelings be known, and, instead of a triangle, what ends up happening is three sad lines fallen in on each other, lying in a pile, waiting for someone to come along and prop them back up into a shape.—
Brian Moylan,
Vulture,
4 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Sermon, his mentor, was in the midst of a painful split-up with his creative partner, PMD.—
Jayson Greene,
Pitchfork,
8 Mar. 2026
-
And, if that wasn't painful enough, your retirement savings takes a hit because the loan isn't getting paid back.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
7 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
As a Port Charles police detective, Lucky endured a series of tragic storylines over the years, including his struggles with addiction and the death of his wife.—
Mekishana Pierre,
Entertainment Weekly,
5 Mar. 2026
-
But nine months of suffering because research for better treatments is lacking is tragic and irresponsible.—
Jason Collins,
The Orlando Sentinel,
5 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
The pathetic leaks didn’t work.—
Lea Veloso,
StyleCaster,
2 Mar. 2026
-
The jobs report was a complete failure, and his economic approval sits at a pathetic 39%.—
Voice of the People,
New York Daily News,
25 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
The aggression with which both parties have worked to manipulate district lines—while loudly inveighing against the other party for doing the exact same thing—is cynical and depressing.—
Ian Crouch,
New Yorker,
4 Mar. 2026
-
The case exposed the depressing banality of it all—the man smiling politely at you at the bakery, only to rape your comatose body at night.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
4 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Engineers have long searched for efficient electric alternatives that can survive the harsh conditions inside industrial systems.—
Aamir Khollam,
Interesting Engineering,
6 Mar. 2026
-
Critics say the danger faced by agents whose names are made public is overblown, almost always limited to harsh and violent words lobbed from behind a laptop or phone screen.—
James Queally,
Los Angeles Times,
6 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Celta’s experienced striker Borja Iglesias equalized for the home side with his third goal in four games after 25 minutes, and strike partner Iago Aspas was unfortunate to see his shot come back off the post with two minutes remaining as both sides pushed for a winner.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
6 Mar. 2026
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This time round, though, an unfortunate silliness sometimes creeps in, where the film risks tipping over Shakespearean-size emotions into embarrassing bathos.—
Miriam Balanescu,
IndieWire,
5 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Through its clear imagery, operators can navigate safely and assess fire scenes even with poor visibility.—
Atharva Gosavi,
Interesting Engineering,
4 Mar. 2026
-
An injection like this has a clear advantage over daily prevention pills in poorer countries, where patients – particularly young women – might struggle to access clinics or feel stigmatised for seeking treatment.—
Harriet Marsden,
TheWeek,
3 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Heartrending.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/heartrending. Accessed 10 Mar. 2026.
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