gruelling

British

/ ˈɡruːəlɪŋ /

adjective

severe or tiring

a gruelling interview

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

noun

informal a severe experience, esp punishment

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of gruelling

C19: from now obsolete vb gruel to exhaust, punish

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.

A man whose wife died six months after being diagnosed with a brain tumour is entering a gruelling triathlon - even though he is still learning to swim.

From BBC • Apr. 20, 2026

Spending time in space will have been physically gruelling for the Artemis II crew.

From BBC • Apr. 10, 2026

Up first are Forest, who host Champions League-chasing Aston Villa at 14:00 BST on Sunday, after a gruelling Europa League quarter-final first leg against Porto on Thursday.

From BBC • Apr. 10, 2026

However, Draper levelled to force a decider as the quality rose, with Djokovic winning a gruelling 26-shot rally in the opening game at 30-30 on the Serb's serve.

From BBC • Mar. 12, 2026

As soon as this happened, they cheerfully abandoned the gruelling, dangerous, and often spartan life of hunter-gatherers, settling down to enjoy the pleasant, satiated life of farmers.

From "Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind" by Yuval Noah Harari

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