as in gruesome
informal
causing great mental or emotional pain
gut-wrenching decisions the novel's gut-wrenching opening scene
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of gut-wrenching
How is this show so funny and so intense and so emotionally gut-wrenching all at once?
—
Erik Kain, Forbes, 21 Mar. 2025
Viewer Reactions The gut-wrenching TikTok video reached over 575,400 views, 212,000 likes and 1,350 comments as of Monday.
—David Faris, Newsweek, 17 Mar. 2025
All of them have ended with gut-wrenching shots in the final eight seconds.
—Sam Cohn, Baltimore Sun, 17 Mar. 2025
The long-running medical drama will air its midseason premiere on Thursday, picking up after its gut-wrenching Season 21 cliffhanger in the fall.
—Anthony Robledo, USA TODAY, 5 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for gut-wrenching
Erik Kain, Forbes, 21 Mar. 2025
Viewer Reactions The gut-wrenching TikTok video reached over 575,400 views, 212,000 likes and 1,350 comments as of Monday.
—David Faris, Newsweek, 17 Mar. 2025
All of them have ended with gut-wrenching shots in the final eight seconds.
—Sam Cohn, Baltimore Sun, 17 Mar. 2025
The long-running medical drama will air its midseason premiere on Thursday, picking up after its gut-wrenching Season 21 cliffhanger in the fall.
—Anthony Robledo, USA TODAY, 5 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for gut-wrenching
Recent Examples of Synonyms for gut-wrenching
Adjective
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Thoughtful, but gruesome is an apt descriptor for the film as well.—
NPR Staff,
NPR,
5 Apr. 2025
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This was true of Fury (2015) as well, his brutal and gruesome war drama featuring Brad Pitt as a tank commander in the final days of World War II leading a platoon of hardened, traumatized, broken soldiers.—
Bilge Ebiri,
Vulture,
3 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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With that horrific risk in mind, the crew hatches a new plan.—
Proma Khosla,
IndieWire,
9 Apr. 2025
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Viscerally horrific, conceptually mindblowing, achingly humane.—
Ollie Barder,
Forbes.com,
9 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Ovechkin is easy to like, though, by all accounts a terrific teammate.—
Greg Cote,
Miami Herald,
7 Apr. 2025
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Just when Kenin looked set to push the contest into a decider, Pegula saved three set points and won six consecutive games to mount a terrific fightback and clinch victory.—
Manasi Pathak,
Forbes.com,
7 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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But even with Edwards’ shocking loss, this outpouring of grief and tributes — the decals, the touching video montages on national TV, the mentions in interviews — had to catch many NASCAR fans off guard.—
Jeff Gluck,
New York Times,
14 Apr. 2025
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That’s a bit shocking for the current winner of the Best New Artist Grammy.—
Hugh McIntyre,
Forbes.com,
14 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Back in August, Renner spoke about how his terrifying snowplow accident in January 2023 led to his daughter becoming a little more independent.—
Hannah Sacks,
People.com,
28 Mar. 2025
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The terrifying predicament happened Sunday, March 23, in a wooded area off Interstate 10 in LaPlace, the St. John the Baptist Parish Sheriff’s Office said in a March 26 news release.—
Mark Price,
Miami Herald,
27 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Wang has $106,000 in independent support, the majority of it from Empower Oakland, a nonprofit co-founded by mayoral candidate Loren Taylor that has emerged as a formidable funding arm in the city’s politics.—
Shomik Mukherjee,
Mercury News,
13 Apr. 2025
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Cornyn is considered a formidable fundraiser; he’s brought in more than $415 million during his time in the Senate.—
Julia Manchester,
The Hill,
11 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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In the episode, O'Dowd and Jones play Mike and Amanda, respectively, a couple living a happy and simple life until Amanda suffers a frightening medical emergency and passes out.—
Christopher Rudolph,
People.com,
11 Apr. 2025
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But don't let the name fool you, Murderbot isn't actually the frightening story of a dangerous security robot.—
Shania Russell,
EW.com,
9 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Skinner had a terrible time of it for much of the season.—
Allan Mitchell,
New York Times,
14 Apr. 2025
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What is disconcerting is when campaign donors and friends & family have commuted sentences after they have been legally convicted of terrible financial crimes.—
Sanjeev Menon,
Forbes.com,
14 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Gut-wrenching.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gut-wrenching. Accessed 21 Apr. 2025.
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