agony

noun

ˈa-gə-nē How to pronounce agony (audio)
Definition of agonynext
1
as in nightmare
a situation or state that causes great suffering and unhappiness waiting all those hours to hear if he'd survived the plane crash was pure agony

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in distress
a state of great suffering of body or mind the agony of never knowing what happened to her son

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in explosion
a sudden intense expression of strong feeling the announcement that the war was over unleashed a mass agony of joy

Synonyms & Similar Words

Synonym Chooser

How does the noun agony differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of agony are distress, misery, and suffering. While all these words mean "the state of being in great trouble," agony suggests pain too intense to be borne.

in agony over the death of their child

Where would distress be a reasonable alternative to agony?

The words distress and agony are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, distress implies an external and usually temporary cause of great physical or mental strain and stress.

the hurricane put everyone in great distress

When is it sensible to use misery instead of agony?

The meanings of misery and agony largely overlap; however, misery stresses the unhappiness attending especially sickness, poverty, or loss.

the homeless live with misery every day

When is suffering a more appropriate choice than agony?

In some situations, the words suffering and agony are roughly equivalent. However, suffering implies conscious endurance of pain or distress.

the suffering of famine victims

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of agony Vonn was heard crying out in agony as medical staff surrounded her. —Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 8 Feb. 2026 The agony of not knowing what would happen to his wife and only child overwhelmed Luis, Xiong said. —Holly Yan, CNN Money, 6 Feb. 2026 Well, there was a great deal left in me, in an agony of embarrassment looking around for that hole on the floor to crawl into. —Natalia Sánchez Loayza, Scientific American, 5 Feb. 2026 The other nine players continued to play out two full possessions while Gafford remained prone on the American Airlines Center court, clearly in agony. —Brad Townsend, Dallas Morning News, 3 Feb. 2026 See All Example Sentences for agony
Recent Examples of Synonyms for agony
  1. nightmare
  2. distress
  3. explosion
  4. misery
  5. anguish
  6. burst
  7. torture
  8. pain
Noun
  • But Brontë’s novel is an eternal nightmare, one that has haunted readers for two centuries.
    — Wilson Chapman, IndieWire, 13 Feb. 2026
  • This system, that supposed to take care of people and protect them, all of a sudden becomes a nightmare.
    — Scott Roxborough, HollywoodReporter, 13 Feb. 2026
Definition of nightmare
Noun
  • Office conversions to residential, especially in New York City, are also helping mitigate some of the distress.
    — Diana Olick, CNBC, 11 Feb. 2026
  • Only four districts face significant fiscal distress — a decline from prior years.
    — John Manly, Mercury News, 10 Feb. 2026
Definition of distress
Noun
  • In a news conference Friday, a spokesperson for the Pest County Police Headquarters said an explosion in one of the rooms likely caused the fire.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 14 Feb. 2026
  • Some parents told the Tribune that pandemic-era growth seems to have set off a snowball effect, fueled by an explosion of online and at-home learning resources.
    — Kate Armanini, Chicago Tribune, 11 Feb. 2026
Definition of explosion
Noun
  • Embracing misery is one kind of defiance; demanding to be heard is another.
    — Inkoo Kang, New Yorker, 5 Feb. 2026
  • This year, more than usual, a group of Florida lawmakers are clinging to a Biblical-sounding principle — and doing their best to ensure that the wages of sin are, at the very least, misery.
    — Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board, The Orlando Sentinel, 1 Feb. 2026
Definition of misery
Noun
  • Even now, more than 40 years later, the lasting image of her career is of Decker laying on the track in anguish and tears after colliding with Zola Budd in the 1984 Olympic 3,000-meter run.
    — Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 14 Feb. 2026
  • Néfissa cries loudly and with anguish about her son, but refuses to acknowledge his truth.
    — Murtada Elfadl, Variety, 13 Feb. 2026
Definition of anguish
Noun
  • There has been some speculation that Lagrange’s future could be as a reliever, which would let his electric arsenal play up in bursts.
    — Gary Phillips, New York Daily News, 15 Feb. 2026
  • Consistency triumphs over bursts of brilliance.
    — Alex Zietlow, Charlotte Observer, 15 Feb. 2026
Definition of burst
Noun
  • Legal cases in Spain Concerns over Rodríguez Torres’ human-rights record have also reached Spanish courts, where a group of Venezuelan exiles filed a criminal complaint accusing him of torture and crimes against humanity.
    — Antonio María Delgado, Miami Herald, 10 Feb. 2026
  • The city faces over 40 lawsuits alleging Guevara falsified evidence, extracted confessions through torture and lied to wrongfully put dozens of Chicagoans behind bars.
    — Jake Sheridan, Chicago Tribune, 9 Feb. 2026
Definition of torture
Noun
  • Personality traits such as mental toughness, discipline, high pain tolerance and persistence may also lead to worsened eating disorder risk and behaviors in athletes.
    — Emily Hemendinger, The Conversation, 13 Feb. 2026
  • And we are bound by ties of community, having attended the same summer camps, showed up at each other’s family celebrations, and felt each other’s pain.
    — Lindsay Baach Friedmann, Time, 13 Feb. 2026
Definition of pain

Browse Nearby Words

agonizingly
agony
agrarian
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Agony.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/agony. Accessed 16 Feb. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on agony

Nglish: Translation of agony for Spanish Speakers

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