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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But Campbell, one of the hardest workers in this draft class, is a terrific athlete.—
Nick Baumgardner,
New York Times,
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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Leaders around the world have responded to U.S. President Donald Trump’s shocking new tariffs that threaten to upend the global economy with stern words and denunciations.—
Chad de Guzman,
Time,
4 Apr. 2025
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The couple shared their shocking experience in a now-viral TikTok video, warning others about the dangers of unsafe food handling.—
Ashley Vega,
People.com,
4 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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In the great-power competition with the United States’ adversaries, none is more formidable than the Chinese Communist Party.—
Arthur Herman,
National Review,
3 Apr. 2025
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Tyler Glasnow is formidable on the mound when healthy.—
Bill Plunkett,
Oc Register,
1 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Good news California began trying to police ghost guns after those frightening findings came out, enacting legislation in both 2022 and 2023 to curtail their unregulated sales.—
Anita Chabria,
Los Angeles Times,
27 Mar. 2025
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But the bloodshed that unfolded March 6-10 in Latakia and Tartous represents a frightening escalation.—
Chris Massaro,
Fox News,
23 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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The rhetoric pushed here is that someone with a high body count has less value and will either make a terrible partner or no one will want them in the first place.—
Mark Travers,
Forbes.com,
4 Apr. 2025
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The domestic box office is presently in a terrible state, and Minecraft could prove to be the shot of confidence Hollywood studios and cinema owners need after recent films, including Disney’s Snow White, have turned into major disappointments.—
Pamela McClintock,
HollywoodReporter,
4 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Gut-wrenching.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gut-wrenching. Accessed 16 Apr. 2025.
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