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to excruciate

to excruciate

8 9.9
To cause someone very great physical or mental pain
  • verb
  • /ɪkˈskruːʃieɪt/
translation icon : excruciar
  • The doctor prescribed medication to help manage the excruciate pain after the surgery.
  • excruciating pain
  • excruciating agony
  • excruciating torture

Examples

  • After the accident, she suffered from excruciate pain that lasted for weeks.

  • He described the excruciate headaches he experienced during his treatment as unbearable.

  • After nine months of excruciating pain, - the cancer had spread.

  • Well, this wedding caused me excruciating pain.

  • The other, an acid that will cause an excruciating death.

  • Her daughter and the angel scream together in excruciating pain.

    Fiction book (1995)
  • Excruciating pain shot through her left leg, but she pushed herself up again.

    Fiction book (1995)
  • He died in excruciating pain.

  • Excruciating pain ripped through her shoulder and down her left side.

    Fiction book (1995)
  • Due to the excruciating pain, Kitty screamed for help, and a neighbor responded, shouting at the criminal.

    Blog text (13)

Synonyms

to torture
vsto excruciate
  • Offensive
582 5.7

To cause someone to feel severe physical or emotional pain, often on purpose

may mean extreme suffering without deliberate intent
to inflict
vsto excruciate
245 6.2

Make someone feel pain or suffer harm

is more specific, meaning extreme torment rather than any unpleasant event
to torment
vsto excruciate
  • NSFW
107 7.2

To cause someone to feel great physical or mental pain

is extreme suffering that is not always as intense or forceful
to rack
vsto excruciate
43 7.5

To cause great physical or mental pain

covers extreme pain both physical and mental broadly rather than specific strain
to pain
vsto excruciate
9 1.1

To make someone feel physical hurt

is broader covering both extreme physical and mental suffering
to agonize
vsto excruciate
  • US
6 6.8

To make someone feel very strong pain or deep worry

is more physical or extreme rather than only mental pain
to anguish
vsto excruciate
4 7.3

To cause someone to feel very strong pain or worry

includes extreme physical or mental torment beyond internal distress

Antonyms

319 1.0

Things people say or do to make someone feel less worried

305 2.1

To make something less painful or difficult

How Painful

to excruciate
8 9.9
torment
  • NSFW
70 5.6
to injure
53 1.6
to hurt
1.0
sting
64 1.4

Surface Forms

excruciate infinitive
excruciated past participle
excruciating present participle
excruciates third person singular

Morphology

excruciate = cruciate (semi-transparent) = ex + cruciate

The verb is formed by the prefix 'ex-' added to 'cruciate' (related to crucify), but 'cruciate' is uncommon and the intensifying/metaphorical extension to 'extreme pain' may not be obvious to average learners.

Etymology

Excruciate comes from the Latin parts ex- 'out of' and crux 'cross' and is related to the word crucify. It first meant putting someone on a cross, which was a very painful punishment, so today excruciate means to cause extreme physical or mental suffering.