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In Ancient Greece, a public gathering was called agon. Since the Greeks placed a high value on sports and athletic competition, there were almost always athletic events at gatherings on festival days. The struggle to win the prize in such contests came to be called agonia. This term came also to be used for any difficult physical struggle and then for the pain that went with it—physical or mental. Our English word agony, meaning “intense pain of mind or body,” thus comes from a word that meant a happy celebration.
Synonyms
Examples of agony in a Sentence
Robin Givhan, Washington Post, 16 Apr. 2024
As the announcer playfully yelled out in agony, the baller smiled with one fist extended into the air, seemingly taking a victory stroll.
—Angel Saunders, Peoplemag, 16 Apr. 2024
The agony of midnight massacre, the frenzy of the ship’s dungeon, the living death of the middle-passage, the wails of separation, the dismal torpor of hopeless servitude—are these found only in the piracy of the slave trade?
—Louis Menand, The New Yorker, 14 Apr. 2024
As smoke rises and the flames consume them, the two men writhe and scream in agony – their final moments of unimaginable pain and horror captured on video.
—Helen Regan, CNN, 28 Mar. 2024
After days of agony, success is a room of people glancing at Lizzy’s work while stuffing their gullets with cheese.
—Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 7 Mar. 2024
The suspect, who remains on the loose, shoved the woman Sunday morning and stole $300 from her purse, her cellphone and her car while the woman writhed in agony on the ground, security video shows.
—Chris Eberhart, Fox News, 9 Apr. 2024
Human beings crash through nature, break it apart and leave it in ruins, just to make supper by 6 p.m.
Your only hope of keeping the agony of this realization at bay is to endeavor to be gentler and better in the tiny scope of things under your control.
—Philip Kennicott, Washington Post, 8 Apr. 2024
Hamas has frequently claimed that some of them have been killed in Israeli airstrikes, and three hostages were mistakenly killed by Israeli forces in December, adding to the agony for the families back home.
—Shira Pinson, NBC News, 5 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'agony.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near agony
Cite this Entry
“Agony.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/agony. Accessed 26 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
Middle English agonie "agony," from Latin agonia (same meaning), from Greek agōnia "struggle," from agōn "gathering, contest for a prize"
Medical Definition
agony
noun
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