Synonyms

exhausting

American

[ig-zaw-sting] / ɪgˈzɔ stɪŋ /

adjective

producing or tending to produce fatigue, weariness, or the like.

an exhausting day; an exhausting child.

Other Word Forms

exhaustingly adverb

Etymology

Origin of exhausting

First recorded in 1530–40; exhaust + -ing ²

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.

If expenses rise, we can use our cash reserves; only after exhausting those would I consider taxable IRA withdrawals.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 8, 2026

"The purchases were undertaken strictly out of extreme necessity as an extraordinary emergency measure in response to unprecedented geopolitical and supply-chain disruptions and only after exhausting all commercially and operationally viable alternatives," the report reads.

From Barron's • Mar. 30, 2026

The bots possess an exhausting reflex to present both sides of every issue, creating a false, artificial balance even when the counterargument is absurd.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 5, 2026

"It was exhausting for us, so I dread to think how poor Marigold felt."

From BBC • Feb. 27, 2026

By the time she had finished exhausting her knowledge of poetry, she had been speaking for an hour.

From "The Interrupted Tale" by Maryrose Wood

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023