anguish
Americannoun
verb (used with object)
-
anguishes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
anguished,
past participle, past
-
anguishing
present participle
verb (used without object)
-
anguishes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
anguished,
past participle, past
-
anguishing
present participle
noun
verb
Synonym Usage
See pain.
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
anguishsimple
-
anguishessimple
-
have anguishedperfect
-
has anguishedperfect
-
am anguishingprogressive
-
are anguishingprogressive
-
is anguishingprogressive
-
have been anguishingperfect progressive
-
has been anguishingperfect progressive
Past
-
anguishedsimple
-
had anguishedperfect
-
was anguishingprogressive
-
were anguishingprogressive
-
had been anguishingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of anguish
First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English anguisse, from Old French, from Latin angustia “tight place,” from angust(us) “narrow” + -ia -ia; cf. anxious
Explanation
The noun anguish refers to severe physical or emotional pain or distress. A trip to the dentist might cause a cavity-prone person a lot of anguish. We get this word from a Latin word, angustus, which literally meant "narrow" but developed the figurative sense of "distressed" — think of being choked off or forced into a small space. In modern times anguish has been in the English with the parallel and related meanings of "physical torment" and "emotional suffering." Both kinds might be experienced at the hands of a dentist who likes to make his patients squirm in agony.
Vocabulary lists containing anguish
The Hate U Give
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Esperanza Rising
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"Of Mice and Men"
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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:
"Camilla's anguish over King's cancer" echoes the Daily Mirror's front page.
From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2026
But Rangzen’s fellow exiled Tibetans, who have struggled to win international attention for their opposition to Chinese communist rule, greeted his passing with anguish -- and respect.
From Barron's ● Aug. 7, 2026
He’d be better off sticking to being adorable and leave the anguish to others.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 30, 2026
In a move that provoked anguish among affected families, Bush was granted conditional bail after entering his final guilty pleas in April.
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
She tries to touch the steering wheel and wails in anguish.
From "Dry" by Neal Shusterman and Jarrod Shusterman
There are few things Americans agree on these days, but one is a shared delight in the anguishes of the Durham, N.C., basketball behemoth.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 30, 2026
That the centerpiece of his monstrous scene is a split-open bag of cement anguishes the heart.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 3, 2022
Kendall never asks this question outright — she takes it as a given and anguishes “when the people who are supposed to be your allies on one axis are your oppressors on another.”
From Washington Post ● Apr. 8, 2020
It may be on stage rather than screen, but Lucy Kirkwood’s The Welkin, currently running at the National Theatre, also applies mordant humour to the anguishes and indignities of reproductive life.
From The Guardian ● Feb. 22, 2020
Why should not such love as this have its drama and its romance, as it has its anguishes, its sacrifices, and its joys?
From The English Stage Being an Account of the Victorian Drama by Augustin Filon
There were anguished gasps from the crowd as Gauff, in total control of the point, snatched at a drop shot and sent it sinking into the net.
From BBC ● Jul. 9, 2026
That kind of anguished, not-funny witticism is another commonplace of the American educated classes: OMG, what has happened to this country?
From Salon ● May 31, 2026
“Tommi Mejer is anguished over the terrible accident,” read the statement from attorneys Paul S. Meyer and Lolita Kirk.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 13, 2026
"Come and help me! I'm on the front line in Ukraine, I'm fighting for Russia," he begged Equatorial Guinea's President Teodoro Obiang Nguema in an anguished voice message sent to his parents.
From Barron's ● Apr. 13, 2026
Although they said they understood, they were clearly anguished about getting legal assistance while other men faced looming executions.
From "Just Mercy" by Bryan Stevenson
Saying goodbye to them had been the single most anguishing moment of my entire life.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026
Emerson recalled an occasion when he was forced to sit in silence for a long time during a session, which he found anguishing.
From Salon ● Feb. 5, 2025
In the midst of an anguishing public health failure, some researchers are questioning the very way we determine who is at risk of suicide.
From Slate ● May 20, 2024
Experts say it's not just the hostage families who are trapped in an anguishing wait.
From BBC ● Mar. 16, 2024
The pig squirms all over the ground, and its squeals become deeper and more anguishing.
From "I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter" by Erika L. Sánchez
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.
