agony
[ ag-uh-nee ]
/ ˈæg ə ni /
noun, plural ag·o·nies.
extreme and generally prolonged pain; intense physical or mental suffering.
a display or outburst of intense mental or emotional excitement: an agony of joy.
the struggle preceding natural death: mortal agony.
a violent struggle.
(often initial capital letter) Theology. the sufferings of Christ in the garden of Gethsemane.
Nearby words
agonist, agonistic, agonize, agonized, agonizing, agony, agony aunt, agony column, agony uncle, agora, agoraphobia
Origin of agony
SYNONYMS FOR agony
Synonym study
1. See pain.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for agony
British Dictionary definitions for agony
agony
/ (ˈæɡənɪ) /
noun plural -nies
acute physical or mental pain; anguish
the suffering or struggle preceding death
pile on the agony, put on the agony or turn on the agony British informal to exaggerate one's distress for sympathy or greater effect
(modifier) relating to or advising on personal problems about which people have written to the mediaagony column; agony writer
Word Origin for agony
C14: via Late Latin from Greek agōnia struggle, from agōn contest
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for agony
agony
late 14c., "mental suffering" (especially that of Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane), from Old French agonie, agoine "anguish, terror, death agony" (14c.), and directly from Late Latin agonia, from Greek agonia "a (mental) struggle for victory," originally "a struggle for victory in the games," from agon "assembly for a contest," from agein "to lead" (see act (n.)). Sense of "extreme bodily suffering" first recorded c.1600.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper