agony column

American  

noun

1. a section or column in a newspaper containing advertisements by individuals seeking missing relatives or lost pets or possessions, announcing the end of a marriage, etc.

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agony column British  

noun

1. a magazine or newspaper feature in which advice is offered to readers who have sent in letters about their personal problems

2. a part of a newspaper containing advertisements for lost relatives, personal messages, etc

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Etymology

Origin of agony column

First recorded in 1860–65

Example Sentences

She hosted a Radio 2 programme, Katie and Friends, and wrote an agony column for the TV Times for nearly two decades.

From BBC • Mar. 20, 2018

Theodore might be Nathanael West’s Miss Lonelyhearts — the cynical newspaperman consigned to the agony column — except that neither he nor writer-director Spike Jonze has anything so fashionable as satire in mind.

From Time • Oct. 12, 2013

No, it's not an agony column or advice for the love sick, but a look at the human heart, the organ that we depend on from the moment we're born to our last breath.

From The Guardian • Feb. 14, 2011

When it comes to the performance and wellbeing of Mitchell Johnson, the Australian newspapers are starting to read like an agony column: What Are We Going To Do About Mitch?

From The Guardian • Dec. 2, 2010

He would insert advertisements in the agony column, or any other column, of any newspaper.

From Hugo A Fantasia on Modern Themes by Bennett, Arnold