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Showing results for pained. Search instead for plained.
Synonyms

pained

American  
[peynd] / peɪnd /

adjective

  1. hurt; injured.

  2. showing or expressing distress, anguish, or resentment.

    a pained look in reply to a sarcastic remark.
pained British  
/ peɪnd /

adjective

  1. having or expressing pain or distress, esp mental or emotional distress

    a pained expression
"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

Other Word Forms

  • overpained adjective
  • unpained adjective

Etymology

Origin of pained

Middle English word dating back to 1300–50; pain, -ed 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.

But since the pits closed almost four decades ago, residents describe a slow and pained decline as people struggled to get well-paid, stable employment.

From BBC • Feb. 17, 2026

"His visit will lift the spirits of a pained community," said Alex Ryvchin, co-chief executive of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, the community's peak body.

From Barron's • Feb. 7, 2026

A Father Christmas figure is pictured looking pained in the water at the foot of a rock.

From Barron's • Nov. 19, 2025

But behind the scenes, we can reveal there have been lengthy, pained discussions and extended tussles between the BBC and the show's production company Banijay over what to do, specifically about Torode.

From BBC • Jul. 18, 2025

Then again—and the idea pained her sharply even as she thought it, like swallowing something cold too quickly—perhaps she already was.

From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood

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.