1
as in painful
hard to accept or bear especially emotionally
relatives had to make the torturous decision to disconnect the patient's life-support system
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2
as in wrenching
intensely or unbearably painful
the post-infection treatment for rabies was as notoriously torturous as the disease itself
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Recent Examples of torturous
But maybe that’s even more torturous than her child named Bless who never even knew that country.
—
A Dialogue, Literary Hub, 11 Aug. 2025
Season 2 reveals the main characters were locked up in a torturous adult rehabilitation center, but have now been allowed to re-enroll at Godolkin University.
—Zoe Kaplan, People.com, 9 Aug. 2025
Today's ruling averts that torturous outcome.
—Tobias Meyjes, MSNBC Newsweek, 5 Aug. 2025
How to make your hair look longer Trying to grow your hair fast can feel torturous, with no one walking the same path to longer lengths.
—Ana Morales, Vogue, 23 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for torturous
A Dialogue, Literary Hub, 11 Aug. 2025
Season 2 reveals the main characters were locked up in a torturous adult rehabilitation center, but have now been allowed to re-enroll at Godolkin University.
—Zoe Kaplan, People.com, 9 Aug. 2025
Today's ruling averts that torturous outcome.
—Tobias Meyjes, MSNBC Newsweek, 5 Aug. 2025
How to make your hair look longer Trying to grow your hair fast can feel torturous, with no one walking the same path to longer lengths.
—Ana Morales, Vogue, 23 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for torturous
Recent Examples of Synonyms for torturous
Adjective
-
Now supposedly dying from some terminal illness, Julian has gone total hermit mode inside of his cluttered London apartment, where the walls are festooned with the relics of his success and the backrooms are a junk pile of painful memories.—
David Ehrlich,
IndieWire,
9 Sep. 2025
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Dig a little deeper by comparing your top three financial goals and sharing your most painful and joyous money memories.—
Mary Clements Evans,
Forbes.com,
9 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
The once-beloved pastels will become harsh.—
Kaleigh Werner,
Footwear News,
6 Sep. 2025
-
The pilgrimage, listed on the official calendar of jubilee events, comes as gay Catholics look to Pope Leo XIV to continue down the bold path of his predecessor to welcome into the church a group that has in the past faced alienation and sometimes harsh treatment.—
Christopher Lamb,
CNN Money,
6 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Their youngest son, Grayson, can still recall the day his parents reported to their separate facilities — and the agonizing decision of who to accompany.—
Ryan Coleman,
Entertainment Weekly,
7 Sep. 2025
-
To see Gauff and Shelton live through the rollercoaster was agonizing and uplifting at the same time.—
Tim Ellis,
Forbes.com,
31 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
Because of the cruel math of throughput and utilization, over ten days, only three hundred people experienced Blur.—
Charlie Fink,
Forbes.com,
6 Sep. 2025
-
Tamra was awful to Gretchen back then, culminating in the Naked Wasted Party, which was one of the cruelest things to ever happen on Housewives.—
Brian Moylan,
Vulture,
5 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
But within those few episodes is a devastating story about a young boy who commits a horrendous crime that unfolds in excruciating detail, with each episode consisting of a single long shot.—
Kelly Lawler,
USA Today,
11 Sep. 2025
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One from the spring of 1977 is excruciating in its details of my humiliation at the hands of a gallerist at what was then the most important photography gallery in New York.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
11 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Pyongyang has continued to exercise significant control over the population and severely restrict the rights and freedoms of its population, and that has only gotten more intense over the last decade.—
Mike Brest,
The Washington Examiner,
12 Sep. 2025
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This question — which strikes at the heart of a perennial issue in American politics, frequently reignited by recurring mass shootings — sparked an intense partisan divide.—
Brendan Rascius,
Miami Herald,
12 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Torturous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/torturous. Accessed 14 Sep. 2025.
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