noun
-
the pain, misery, or loss experienced by a person who suffers
-
the state or an instance of enduring pain, etc
Other Word Forms
- sufferingly adverb
- unsuffering adjective
Etymology
Origin of suffering
First recorded in 1350–1400; suffer + -ing 1 ( def. )
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.
In this forbidding portrait, suffering threatens to outweigh the tantalizing possibility of redemption.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 3, 2026
"I'm doing this to pray for the healing of my seven-month-old baby, who is suffering from pneumonia," John David, clutching a whip in one hand, told AFP at the beginning of the procession.
From Barron's • Apr. 3, 2026
They expressed their "full support to the government and the people of Lebanon, who are once again suffering the dramatic consequences of a war that is not theirs".
From BBC • Mar. 31, 2026
“Although we’re grieving there is some comfort in knowing she is no longer suffering and is reunited with her sisters in peace.”
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 30, 2026
Finally, after the suffering became intolerable, he relented, was examined, and was told that he was suffering from orchitis, an inflammation of the testicle.
From "Endgame" by Frank Brady
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.
