EN

Synonyms for throe

  • verb
  • noun

Most common

smart torture afflict

Synonyms by meaning

Verb

1. Pang — to cause (someone) to feel throes, as if in childbirth; to put in agony

pang, anguish, torture, afflict, smart, torment, agonize, agonise UK

2. Pain — to feel throes; to struggle in extreme pain; to be in agony; to agonize

pain IN, thole UK

Noun

agony, spasm, paroxysm, frow, misery

Antonyms

succour

All antonyms of throe →

Definitions

  1. v. 1

    To cause (someone) to feel throes, as if in childbirth; to put in agony.

  2. v. 2

    To feel throes; to struggle in extreme pain; to be in agony; to agonize.

  3. n. 1

    A severe pang or spasm of pain, especially one experienced when the uterus contracts during childbirth, or when a person is about to die.

Forms

Plural
throes → agonies, spasms, paroxysms, frows…
Past participle
throed
e.g. throed → panged, anguished, tortured, afflicted…

Choose the right word

Throe or Pain?

Throe is a violent and thrilling pain.

J. C. Fernald, English Synonyms and Antonyms (1914)

Example sentences

  • smart My boyfriend is smart, handsome, and friendly too.
  • torture His lecture on chemistry was nothing but torture.
  • afflict My motto is: Comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable.

Popularity over time

Word1850 → 2019Trend
throefalling
smartrising
torturerising
afflictrising

Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.

By length

4 letters
pain1, pang1, frow
5 letters
smart1, agony3, spasm2, thole1
6 letters
misery3
7 letters
torture2, anguish2, torment2, afflict2, agonize3, agonise
8 letters
paroxysm

The small number after each word is its number of syllables (agony3 = 3 syllables).