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)
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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
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agonizesimple
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agonizessimple
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have agonizedperfect
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has agonizedperfect
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am agonizingprogressive
-
are agonizingprogressive
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is agonizingprogressive
-
have been agonizingperfect progressive
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has been agonizingperfect progressive
Past
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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
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Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie
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An American Plague
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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:
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
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
We don’t know enough about him to agonize with him.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 6, 2024
When they wed, their fans swoon; when stars divorce, people agonize over what went wrong.
From Salon ● Jan. 5, 2024
When I look in the mirror, I agonize about my skin.
From "Americanized" by Sara Saedi
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
Admittedly, he agonizes over defeat more than he celebrates victory.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 19, 2024
In another, a girl agonizes while her 10-year-old sister buys a maroon lifeguard hoodie.
From New York Times ● Jul. 11, 2023
Tellez left Citrus College in October 2020 and still agonizes over the decision.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 18, 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
I’m agonized by the thought that she might have sought help before she died.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 30, 2026
All week I’d agonized about what movie would be my emotionally laden farewell salute.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 30, 2026
“That’s what agonized him so much — that when you record things, they are forever.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 15, 2025
Etty agonized over heaven and hell because she felt she was not as good a girl as Annie had been.
From "Charles and Emma: The Darwins' Leap of Faith" by Deborah Heiligman
“It was agonizing and just felt to learn this is beyond me,” Mandell told The Times in 2007.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 15, 2026
Among them are white male entitlement versus the crushing demands of Black exceptionalism; the complicated bond linking fathers to sons; and the agonizing bravery required of mothers raising boys the world is conditioned to ostracize.
From Salon ● Oct. 5, 2026
Collins stood outside for several agonizing minutes, hearing their muffled voices.
From Slate ● Sep. 17, 2026
While her portrayal of Dailey is agonizing, Ms. Colloff’s rendering of Paul Skalnik, a career criminal and the other man at the center of the book, is chilling.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 10, 2026
It was so agonizing, I thought, seriously, that my heart would stop.
From This Side of Wild by Gary Paulsen
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
