From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishagonyag‧o‧ny /ˈæɡəni/ ●○○ noun (plural agonies) [countable, uncountable] 1 PAINvery severe pain the agony of arthritisin agony I was in agony. He groaned in agony.► see thesaurus at pain2 SUFFERa very sad, difficult, or unpleasant experience It was agony not knowing if she would live.agony of He was in agonies of remorse. → pile on the pressure/agony at pile, → prolong the agony at prolong(2)
Examples from the Corpus
agony• But Greenspun's upscale decor pales as she talks of another time and place full of pain and agony.• She's been in agony with a long term back disorder.• People covered their mouths in agony.• With renewed fighting for control of the capital, there seems to be no end to the region's agony.• The pure hell of making a speech is only equalled by the agony of the audience.• In the book she describes the agony of watching her child die.• The instant the light hit my pupils, the agony began.• In retrospect, dying of the disease itself would seem infinitely preferable to the agonies of death from mercury poisoning.• It was agony not knowing where he was.in agony• He was lying on the floor in agony.Origin agony (1300-1400) Late Latin agonia, from Greek, “trouble, great anxiety”, from agon “competition for a prize” 