agonize
Americanverb (used without object)
-
agonizes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
agonized,
past participle, past
-
agonizing
present participle
-
to suffer extreme pain or anguish; be in agony.
-
to put forth great effort of any kind.
verb (used with object)
-
agonizes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
agonized,
past participle, past
-
agonizing
present participle
verb
-
to suffer or cause to suffer agony
-
(intr) to make a desperate effort; struggle; strive
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
agonizesimple
-
agonizessimple
-
have agonizedperfect
-
has agonizedperfect
-
am agonizingprogressive
-
are agonizingprogressive
-
is agonizingprogressive
-
have been agonizingperfect progressive
-
has been agonizingperfect progressive
Past
-
agonizedsimple
-
had agonizedperfect
-
was agonizingprogressive
-
were agonizingprogressive
-
had been agonizingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of agonize
1575–85; < Medieval Latin agōnizāre < Greek agōnízesthai to struggle (for a prize), equivalent to agōn- agon + -izesthai -ize
Explanation
When you worry excessively about something, you agonize about it. The mother of a teenage boy might agonize over his safety when he first learns to drive. Agonize can mean to suffer true pain, but it's generally a mental type of anguish. A student might agonize over what to wear the first day of school, and a boss might agonize about how to break the bad news about layoffs to her employees. The earliest meaning of agonize was "to torture," though now it means something closer to "to torture one's self." The Greek root is a grand one: agonizesthai, "to contend in the struggle."
Vocabulary lists containing agonize
The Diary of Anne Frank
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
An American Plague
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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.
See Examples For:
This way, we wouldn’t have to agonize over every ride and could even hop aboard to cross the Grand Canal without having to walk to the nearest bridge.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 2, 2026
“I used to agonize over things. I worry a lot less today. You realize that what shows up in the process, that might take you by surprise, is often better than what you’d planned for.”
From Los Angeles Times ● May 14, 2025
Refusing even a hint of introspection, she added: “We don’t agonize over what happened. We organize about what comes next.”
From Slate ● Nov. 15, 2024
When they wed, their fans swoon; when stars divorce, people agonize over what went wrong.
From Salon ● Jan. 5, 2024
He was by nature a decisive man, and although this was one of the great decisions of his life and he knew it, he made it quickly and did not agonize over it.
From "The Killer Angels: The Classic Novel of the Civil War" by Michael Shaara
In 1415, on the eve of challenging France at the Battle of Agincourt, he agonizes about the moral burdens of kingship.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 9, 2026
When semaglutide agonizes these receptors, it tells the body to make more insulin.
From Salon ● Nov. 12, 2022
“She agonizes over whether she will see him in the afterlife,” the lawsuit stated.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 31, 2022
Months later, she still fights feeling of resentment mixed with worry and agonizes over her belief that her return to work had left her mother more vulnerable to Covid.
From New York Times ● May 14, 2022
Additional copies have been filed elsewhere for posterity and safekeeping, as the desk copies often meet such gruesome fates while Chandresh agonizes over every word.
From "The Night Circus" by Erin Morgenstern
Faisuris Alvarez, who runs a beachside fish stand, agonized aloud over these questions without answers.
From Barron's ● Jul. 11, 2026
So for the new owner of a franchise that agonized for nearly 40 years before its first Super Bowl and another 12 until its second, the wait for a third championship could be considerably shorter.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 18, 2026
Kwangchul Youn was a mesmerizing storyteller as Gurnemanz; Brian Mulligan a poignant, agonized Amfortas; Falk Struckmann a powerful Klingsor.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 19, 2025
That triggered another fraught process as board members agonized over the structure of a deal that would reward rank-and-file shareholders — not just the Redstones.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 7, 2025
Because the times he thought there might be something he could say to change Ken’s mind, or Neil Nixon’s, or Lou Radin’s, or Chris Olsen’s, were the times he agonized most.
From "Typical American" by Gish Jen
Earlier in the week, there was the agonizing sight of Jack Draper, the former Top-10 British wunderkind, tearing up mid-match as he continues to be hobbled by arm pain.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026
Pessina and her siblings began an agonizing search.
From Barron's ● Jul. 2, 2026
In his third season with the Dodgers, rising star Andy Pages navigates the agonizing reality of being separated from his parents and sister as U.S.-Cuba relations face new flashpoints.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 14, 2026
Once she learned this, he added, finalizing her return wasn’t as agonizing.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 8, 2026
So while everybody else was writing whatever the day’s journal was supposed to be, I was agonizing over the details of this math problem.
From "Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie" by Jordan Sonnenblick
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
