adjective
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not causing pain or distress
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not affected by pain
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of painless
Explanation
Anything that's painless doesn't hurt at all. A painless medical procedure (like having blood drawn) might be a little scary, but it's actually very easy. Getting your teeth cleaned at the dentist should be a painless process, although getting a filling sometimes hurts a little bit. A painless math test is simple and requires very little work or thought on your part — this is a figurative way to use painless, obviously, since no one would expect a math test to cause you physical pain, even if it's not your strongest subject.
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.
With the Strait of Hormuz effectively closed—and at least 12 million b/d shut in—it was a relatively painless time to make a move that would normally have been bearish for oil prices.
From Barron's • May 4, 2026
The team also used pattern visual evoked potentials – a painless test that measured how well signals travelled from the retina to the visual cortex.
From BBC • Apr. 22, 2026
To study these changes, the team relied on two painless techniques that can be used while a person rests quietly.
From Science Daily • Feb. 24, 2026
Correggio has not made our experience simple or painless.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 9, 2026
Now, OK, I’ve never even shaved my face before, so perhaps I should have figured out this wouldn’t be a quick or painless procedure.
From "Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie" by Jordan Sonnenblick
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.
