agony
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 Agony .Theology. the sufferings of Christ in the garden of Gethsemane.
Origin of agony
1synonym study For agony
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Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use agony in a sentence
It should serve as a reminder of those parents still experiencing that agony.
For a mother forced to give up her child, decades of grief, shame and secrets | Ellen McCarthy | February 5, 2021 | Washington PostIf your muscles feel so tight that the gentlest prod causes agony, a heated pad can be a great ally.
A step-by-step guide to giving yourself a massage | Sandra Gutierrez G. | January 14, 2021 | Popular-ScienceThrough Nadir’s journey, Joukhadar gives us a raw and powerful portrayal of his character’s agony and loneliness as he deals with living in a body that make him look female.
Zeyn Joukhadar’s ‘The Thirty Names of Night’ is a poetic portrait of a trans man’s search for a rare bird — and his own identity | Carol Memmott | November 23, 2020 | Washington PostI once imagined the agony of illness being the greatest challenge I’d face as a doctor.
Thank You for the 7 PM Clapping, But Camaraderie Is Needed More Than Ever - Facts So Romantic | Ayala Danzig | October 5, 2020 | NautilusTwice, Raymond Jefferson’s service to his country left him in pain, agony and facing years of recovery.
He was forced to resign after a government report criticized him. Eight years later, the government took it back. | Joe Davidson | September 24, 2020 | Washington Post
Truth be told, there is no one better at capturing the agony and alarm of a woman in the throes of a nervous breakdown than Moore.
The agony of being so close to our goal but failing gnaws at our insides while we replay the events over and over in our heads.
Heart of Darkness: Into Afghanistan’s Taliban Valley | Matt Trevithick, Daniel Seckman | November 15, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTAnimals in agony or danger are used by Martin Wittfooth, often to hint at the future of the human condition.
Murray lost 6-1 7-6, 6-2 as Kate and William grimaced and groaned in agony with the rest of the nation.
Murray Crashes Out Of Wimbledon As Kate And William Watch | Tom Sykes | July 2, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTBut if he positioned himself a certain way, he found he could avoid excruciating agony.
In the year of misery, of agony and suffering in general he had endured, he had settled upon one theory.
The Homesteader | Oscar MicheauxYour sacrifice shall be the agony of agonies, the death of deaths, and yet you'll find yourself unable to resist.
Checkmate | Joseph Sheridan Le FanuEach sentence came as if torn piecemeal from his unwilling tongue; short, jerky phrases, conceived in pain and delivered in agony.
Raw Gold | Bertrand W. SinclairHaving reduced Punch to a second agony of tears Harry departed upstairs with the news that Punch was still rebellious.
Kipling Stories and Poems Every Child Should Know, Book II | Rudyard KiplingHow little did she realize the long drawn-out agony that was even then beginning for her sisters in that ill-fated entrenchment!
The Red Year | Louis Tracy
British Dictionary definitions for agony
/ (ˈæɡənɪ) /
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 media: agony column; agony writer
Origin of agony
1Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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