heartbreaking
Americanadjective
Other Word Forms
- heartbreakingly adverb
Etymology
Origin of heartbreaking
First recorded in 1600–10; heartbreak + -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.
"That was heartbreaking. It felt like being diagnosed all over again," she remembered.
From BBC
Velasco referred to the deaths as “absolutely painful, heartbreaking, and of course, also absolutely unacceptable to the Mexican government.”
From Los Angeles Times
One of the creditors, who has begun bankruptcy proceedings against de Min to try to recover his money, said the situation was "heartbreaking" because they had "trusted someone".
From BBC
Olympic diver Tom Daley has backed a campaign to save one of Scotland's last diving pools, describing a decision to close it as "heartbreaking".
From BBC
Yet the performance is mostly one of heartbreaking reserve; her occasional voiceover comes in short, spare declarations from Carol’s diary on the latest dreadfulness to afflict the town.
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.
