Examples of painful in a Sentence
I got a painful sunburn.
We can't ignore our country's painful history of slavery.
His questions brought up a lot of painful memories.
It was painful to watch.
Recent Examples on the Web
This both sounds painful and is painful.
—
Bruce Y. Lee, Forbes.com, 31 May 2026
The most painful part of the quarter-long dry spell was that Oklahoma City seemed to have all the answers during San Antonio’s explosive first half.
—William Guillory, New York Times, 31 May 2026
In fact, the one-year mark is often the most painful time for the bereaved, as this is when the reality and permanence of their loss begin to sink in.
—Julie Kaplow, USA Today, 30 May 2026
So yeah, there was this painful past of dispossession and disease and sickness and population loss.
—AFAR Media, 30 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for painful
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Bruce Y. Lee, Forbes.com, 31 May 2026
The most painful part of the quarter-long dry spell was that Oklahoma City seemed to have all the answers during San Antonio’s explosive first half.
—William Guillory, New York Times, 31 May 2026
In fact, the one-year mark is often the most painful time for the bereaved, as this is when the reality and permanence of their loss begin to sink in.
—Julie Kaplow, USA Today, 30 May 2026
So yeah, there was this painful past of dispossession and disease and sickness and population loss.
—AFAR Media, 30 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for painful
Cite this Entry
“Painful.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/painful. Accessed 2 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
