excruciating
Americanadjective
-
extremely painful; causing intense suffering; unbearably distressing; torturing: excruciating pain.
an excruciating noise;
excruciating pain.
- Synonyms:
- racking, agonizing, unendurable, insufferable, unbearable
-
exceedingly elaborate or intense; extreme.
done with excruciating care.
adjective
-
unbearably painful; agonizing
-
intense; extreme
he took excruciating pains to do it well
-
informal irritating; trying
-
humorous very bad
an excruciating pun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of excruciating
First recorded in 1655–65; excruciat(e) + -ing 2
Explanation
Something that’s really intense or painful is excruciating. If you go skiing and break your leg in several places, the ride from the slope to the hospital will be excruciating — unless you're unconscious, too. Excruciating doesn't just hurt. It feels like torture. This adjective actually comes to us from the Latin excruciatus, which means “to afflict, harass, vex, torment.” Extremely painful injuries are certainly excruciating, but sometimes so are tedious tasks or long waits: Watching the old lady in front of you pay for her groceries one nickel at a time can be just as excruciating as 4 broken ribs, especially if you're in a hurry.
Vocabulary lists containing excruciating
Their Eyes Were Watching God
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I Am Malala
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Brave New World
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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.
Nicolas Winding Refn’s “Her Private Hell” is longer than that and the inertia is excruciating.
From Los Angeles Times • May 19, 2026
But over two excruciating days this week, journal entries from OpenAI’s president and co-founder were entered as exhibits in the trial captivating Silicon Valley.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 9, 2026
Writing on Instagram, he said he had recently spent time in hospital, with doctors "trying to find the reason for the excruciating pain I was feeling in my back".
From BBC • Apr. 23, 2026
The children and families at Dilley are often held under excruciating conditions, but their numbers are declining: Since Castro’s first trip, in January, the population at the center has dropped from 1,100 to just 450.
From Slate • Mar. 20, 2026
Celia maintains that no amount of money is worth such an excruciating experience, but Hector is insistent, and so they continue to travel, levitating tables and producing phantom knocking on all manner of well-papered walls.
From "The Night Circus" by Erin Morgenstern
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.
