as in bitterly
with feelings of bitterness or grief
painfully she recounted the difficult relationship she had with her mother
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Recent Examples of painfully
His answer is almost painfully endearing.
—
Ryan Brennan, Miami Herald, 30 Mar. 2026
Both seasons were painfully funny (often just painful), but the humor sometimes got lost as time has proven even its most over-the-top bits eerily correct.
—Jennifer Silverman, Rolling Stone, 29 Mar. 2026
Aaron thought about writing an op-ed or speaking at a rally, but such gestures struck him as painfully insufficient.
—Oriana Van Praag, New Yorker, 28 Mar. 2026
The Scale of the Problem The 2026 State of the Vagina Report from O Positiv Health, a survey of over 3,000 women, paints a picture that may feel painfully familiar.
—Allison Palmer, Sacbee.com, 26 Mar. 2026
The 2004 comedy shows the painfully awkward life of curly-haired Napoleon Dynamite trying to help his new friend, Pedro, win class president at their high school in Idaho.
—Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 25 Mar. 2026
The camp is isolated and poorly resourced, and its traditions—including its conception of gender roles—can be painfully rigid.
—Literary Hub, 25 Mar. 2026
These stock-heavy portfolios can leave people painfully exposed to downturns.
—Liz Weston, San Diego Union-Tribune, 22 Mar. 2026
Writer-director Luchina Fisher’s documentary The Dads, a portrait of assorted American fathers trying to support their trans and non-binary children in these dark times, is both painfully timely and blessedly hopeful, a warning and a balm in one handy package.
—Leslie Felperin, HollywoodReporter, 20 Mar. 2026
Ryan Brennan, Miami Herald, 30 Mar. 2026
Both seasons were painfully funny (often just painful), but the humor sometimes got lost as time has proven even its most over-the-top bits eerily correct.
—Jennifer Silverman, Rolling Stone, 29 Mar. 2026
Aaron thought about writing an op-ed or speaking at a rally, but such gestures struck him as painfully insufficient.
—Oriana Van Praag, New Yorker, 28 Mar. 2026
The Scale of the Problem The 2026 State of the Vagina Report from O Positiv Health, a survey of over 3,000 women, paints a picture that may feel painfully familiar.
—Allison Palmer, Sacbee.com, 26 Mar. 2026
The 2004 comedy shows the painfully awkward life of curly-haired Napoleon Dynamite trying to help his new friend, Pedro, win class president at their high school in Idaho.
—Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 25 Mar. 2026
The camp is isolated and poorly resourced, and its traditions—including its conception of gender roles—can be painfully rigid.
—Literary Hub, 25 Mar. 2026
These stock-heavy portfolios can leave people painfully exposed to downturns.
—Liz Weston, San Diego Union-Tribune, 22 Mar. 2026
Writer-director Luchina Fisher’s documentary The Dads, a portrait of assorted American fathers trying to support their trans and non-binary children in these dark times, is both painfully timely and blessedly hopeful, a warning and a balm in one handy package.
—Leslie Felperin, HollywoodReporter, 20 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for painfully
Adverb
-
Generational and ideological battle lines were drawn; perhaps most bitterly, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) and aligned super political action committees spent $7 million in this district alone.—
David Daley,
Chicago Tribune,
31 Mar. 2026
-
But Republican supermajorities in the House and Senate find themselves at a familiar impasse, bitterly divided over which approach to take.—
Matthew Kelly,
Kansas City Star,
28 Mar. 2026
Adverb
-
Raffles London at The OWO’s interiors impresario Thierry Despont sadly died this summer, before the final unveiling of his oeuvre.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
5 Apr. 2026
-
But, this is sadly a highly attractive spot for dirt, dust, and dead bugs to collect.—
Ashlyn Needham,
Southern Living,
3 Apr. 2026
Adverb
-
Tarun would tease her, and my mother would look sorrowfully toward Kavitha, as if the two of them now shared some womanly burden.—
Madhuri Vijay,
New Yorker,
16 Nov. 2025
Adverb
-
Third baseman Matt Chapman charged hard and fielded the ball, but the ball popped out of his glove on the exchange.—
Justice delos Santos,
Mercury News,
5 Apr. 2026
-
No baseball community dies harder, without reward, than the Rockies faithful, spring after spring.—
Sean Keeler,
Denver Post,
4 Apr. 2026
Adverb
-
For their part, Democratic leaders spoke mournfully of limits, of energy shortages, of national decline, of a crisis of confidence itself.—
Rosa Lyster,
Harpers Magazine,
30 Dec. 2025
-
Based on the Dylan Thomas prose poem of the same name, published in 1952, the film lovingly and mournfully depicts the boyhood Christmastime of an old Welshman, tenderly and a tad mischievously embodied by Elliott.—
Sheldon Pearce,
New Yorker,
21 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Painfully.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/painfully. Accessed 6 Apr. 2026.
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