1
: feeling pain : hurt
2
: expressing or involving pain
a pained expression
with pained surprise

Examples of pained in a Sentence

She wore a pained expression on her face. He truly looked pained when he heard the news.
Recent Examples on the Web The coolest collegiate women’s basketball player on the planet routinely produces plays so picturesque, every smudge is briefly met with a pained annoyance that inspires her to retrieve the brush and swirl anew. Houston Mitchell, Los Angeles Times, 25 Mar. 2024 Sitting next to his wife, Jennifer Lopez, Ben Affleck slumped back in his courtside seat with a pained look on his face. Danny Emerman, The Mercury News, 17 Mar. 2024 Her excellent new Eternal Sunshine is a bold personal statement, with her most inventive, pained, reflective songs. Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone, 13 Mar. 2024 What surprised them, what pained and incensed them, was that the Russians occupied Kherson with the help of ordinary Ukrainians like Andriy Koshelev. James Verini Paolo Pellegrin, New York Times, 1 Nov. 2023 Graden, 21, filmed as the pair walked the city, slowed by Alonzo’s pained steps. Amber Ferguson, Washington Post, 12 Mar. 2024 Thankfully, the Moon smooths things over with pained Chiron, heightening our empathy and healing potential. Tarot.com, Hartford Courant, 12 Jan. 2024 Murphy fleshes him out with loaded silences and pained gestures, his pale, expressive eyes conveying a world of hurt, of trauma yanked back to the surface by startling experience. David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 15 Feb. 2024 Turbulence is on the horizon, though, as the Moon faces off with pained Chiron. Tarot.com, Baltimore Sun, 31 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'pained.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of pained was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near pained

Cite this Entry

“Pained.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pained. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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