agonize

verb

ag·​o·​nize ˈa-gə-ˌnīz 

agonized; agonizing

transitive verb

: to cause to suffer agony : torture

intransitive verb

1

: to suffer agony, torture, or anguish

agonizes over every decision

2

: struggle

… baseless wisdom … requires that a writer … must agonize … for a minimum of two years for each one that he spends writing.

—George V. Higgins

Synonyms of agonize

• persecute
• plague
• afflict
• torture
• bother
• anguish
• torment
• besiege

Examples of agonize in a Sentence

got into more trouble, further agonizing her poor mother

agonized for days over whether she'd done the right thing

Recent Examples on the Web

Bono heard potential in it, but he and Snow Patrol’s Johnny McDaid, a collaborator on the folk project, rewrote the lyrics around a mother agonizing over a divide between two sons. — Brian Hiatt, Rolling Stone, 28 Sep. 2026

Aylin spent several weeks cooped up in an apartment block in Bangui, the CAR capital, agonizing over her limited options. — Mick Krever, CNN Money, 26 Sep. 2026

Alice’s viewpoint is boring, and anyone who agonizes about it forever will never get to the interesting parts. — Jay Caspian Kang, New Yorker, 15 Sep. 2026

Granted, not as agonizing as a Cleveland Browns fan watching the team’s quarterback competition play out in training camp, but agonizing nonetheless. — Saad Yousuf, New York Times, 9 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Middle French agoniser "to exercise, struggle, suffer, (in past participle agonisé) torment," borrowed from Medieval Latin agōnizāre "to struggle, suffer death pangs," going back to Late Latin, "to fight, wrestle," borrowed from Greek agōnízesthai "to contest, fight," verbal derivative of agṓn "assembly, contest" — more at agony

First Known Use

1570, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 2

Rhymes for agonize

• advertise
• aggrandize
• alibis
• alkalies
• alkalis
• amortize
• amplifies
• analyse
• analyze
• anywise
• authorize
• butterflies

Kids Definition

agonize

verb

ag·​o·​nize ˈag-ə-ˌnīz 

agonized; agonizing

: to suffer or cause to suffer extreme pain or anguish of body or mind

agonizingly

-ˌnī-ziŋ-lē

adverb