Synonyms for tormenting
- adjective
Most common
All synonyms
Adjective
painful, agonizing, agonising UK, excruciating, provoking, tormentous dated rare
Definitions
- adj. 1
Involving or causing torment.
Example sentences
- painful She is still in the painful process of growing up.
- provoking He deliberately kept on provoking a confrontation.
- excruciating You discovered my biggest weakness: excruciating pain.
- agonizing We found her still alive, she was agonizing.
Popularity over time
| Word | 1850 → 2019 | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| tormenting | rising | |
| painful | rising | |
| provoking | rising | |
| excruciating | rising | |
| agonizing | rising |
Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.
By length
- 7 letters
- painful2
- 9 letters
- provoking3, agonizing4, agonising
- 10 letters
- tormentous
- 12 letters
- excruciating5
The small number after each word is its number of syllables (painful2 = 2 syllables).