agony

Definition from Wiktionary, a free dictionary

Jump to: navigation, search

Contents

[edit] English

[edit] Etymology

From Ancient Greek ἀγωνία (agonia), “‘emulation, competition, struggle’”), from ἀγών (agon), “‘contest’”).

[edit] Pronunciation

[edit] Noun

Singular
agony

Plural
agonies

agony (plural agonies)

  1. Violent contest or striving.
    The world is convulsed by the agonies of great nations. —Thomas Babington Macaulay.
  2. Pain so extreme as to cause writhing or contortions of the body, similar to those made in the athletic contests in Greece; and hence, extreme pain of mind or body; anguish; paroxysm of grief; specifically, the sufferings of Christ in the garden of Gethsemane.
    Being in an agony he prayed more earnestly. —Luke xxii. 44.
  3. Paroxysm of joy; keen emotion.
    With cries and agonies of wild delight. —Alexander Pope.
  4. The last struggle of life; death struggle.

[edit] Synonyms

[edit] Related terms

[edit] Translations

violent contest or striving
extreme pain of mind or body
paroxysm of joy
The last struggle of life
The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Help:How to check translations.
Translations to be checked
Retrieved from "http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/agony"