painful
Americanadjective
-
affected with, causing, or characterized by pain.
a painful wound; a painful night; a painful memory.
- Synonyms:
- excruciating, agonizing
-
laborious; exacting; difficult.
a painful life.
- Synonyms:
- arduous
- Antonyms:
- easy
-
Archaic. painstaking; careful.
adjective
-
causing pain; distressing
a painful duty
-
affected with pain
a painful leg
-
tedious or difficult
-
informal extremely bad
a painful performance
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of painful
Middle English word dating back to 1300–50; see origin at pain, -ful
Explanation
Anything painful hurts a lot — either physically or emotionally. Your sprained ankle may be painful, but so is your broken heart. When something is physically painful, it hurts your body in some way, like a painful burn or a painful paper cut. Other things hurt just as much, but in an emotional way, like a painful separation from your cat when you go to summer camp. You can also use this adjective informally to mean really bad: "The wedding band's attempt at 'Stairway to Heaven' was just painful."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Television replays revealed painful contact between Jackson’s throwing hand and a Bills defender.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 2, 2026
Despite a round of antivirals, the flare turned into the painful condition Bell’s palsy, a complication that causes muscle weakness and drooping, often in one side of the face.
From Slate ● Nov. 1, 2026
Mourinho has addressed speculation that Alexander-Arnold could leave Real Madrid in January, admitting that difficult selection decisions can be painful but insisting that the team's needs must come first.
From BBC ● Nov. 1, 2026
Such extensive facial damage would likely have made eating and communicating extremely painful and difficult.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 31, 2026
I can tell she means it as a joke, but it comes out all strange, like it’s painful for her to say.
From "The Wrong Way Home" by Kate O’Shaughnessy
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
