painful
Americanadjective
-
affected with, causing, or characterized by pain.
a painful wound; a painful night; a painful memory.
- Synonyms:
- excruciating, agonizing
-
laborious; exacting; difficult.
a painful life.
- Synonyms:
- arduous
- Antonyms:
- easy
-
Archaic. painstaking; careful.
adjective
-
causing pain; distressing
a painful duty
-
affected with pain
a painful leg
-
tedious or difficult
-
informal extremely bad
a painful performance
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of painful
Middle English word dating back to 1300–50; see origin at pain, -ful
Explanation
Anything painful hurts a lot — either physically or emotionally. Your sprained ankle may be painful, but so is your broken heart. When something is physically painful, it hurts your body in some way, like a painful burn or a painful paper cut. Other things hurt just as much, but in an emotional way, like a painful separation from your cat when you go to summer camp. You can also use this adjective informally to mean really bad: "The wedding band's attempt at 'Stairway to Heaven' was just painful."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Here, Nolan once again returns to his pet themes of playing God, human mistreatment, the passage of time, and bearing witness to the world’s slow, painful destruction.
From Salon ● Jul. 18, 2026
While the aforementioned exits late in the World Cup and Euros may be painful to remember, they are still a sign of immense progress for England's tournament progression.
From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2026
Asian stocks enjoyed a much-needed rally following a painful selloff in recent weeks as tech firms were battered by concerns over extended valuations and the vast sums invested in artificial intelligence.
From Barron's ● Jul. 15, 2026
Written after a painful breakup, the album is marked by a melancholy style and includes guest appearances from SZA, Erykah Badu and Cecile Believe.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 12, 2026
Kennedy agreed to do it, but his bad back made throwing painful.
From "Fallout: Spies, Superbombs, and the Ultimate Cold War Showdown" by Steve Sheinkin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.