Related Searches
on Ask.com
distressing - 20 thesaurus results
| Main Entry: | distress |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | worry, upset |
| Synonyms: | afflict, aggrieve, agonize, ail, be on one's case, bother, break, bug, burn up, depress, desolate, discombobulate, disquiet, disturb, do a number on, dog*, eat*, get to*, get*, give a hard time, grieve, harass, harry, hound, hurt, injure, irk, irritate, make it tough for, miff, nag, needle, nit-pick, oppress, pain, peeve, perplex, pester, pick on, plague, push, push buttons, rack, sadden, strain, strap, stress, tick off*, torment, torture, trouble, try, vex, weigh, wound |
| Antonyms: | assist, calm, comfort, help, soothe |
* = informal/non-formal usage
| Main Entry: | awful |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | very bad; terrible |
| Synonyms: | abominable, alarming, appalling, atrocious, deplorable, depressing, dire, disgusting, distressing, dreadful, fearful, frightful, ghastly, gross*, gruesome, grungy*, harrowing, hideous, horrible, nasty, offensive, raunchy, repulsive, shocking, stinking, synthetic, tough, ugly, unpleasant, unsightly, grody, horrendous, horrific, horrifying |
| Antonyms: | beautiful, good, pleasing, ok |
* = informal/non-formal usage
| Main Entry: | bothersome |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | troubling |
| Synonyms: | annoying, distressing, disturbing, inconvenient, irritating, remote, tiresome, troublesome, vexatious, aggravating, exasperating, incommodious, rebarbative, vexing |
| Antonyms: | convenient, helpful, untroubling |
| Main Entry: | deplorable |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | unfortunate, shameful |
| Synonyms: | awful, blameworthy, bummer*, calamitous, dire, dirty, disastrous, disgraceful, dishonorable, disreputable, distressing, dolorous, downer*, dreadful, execrable, faulty, grievous, grim, heartbreaking, heartrending, intolerable, lamentable, lousy, melancholy, miserable, mournful, opprobrious, overwhelming, poor, regrettable, reprehensible, rotten, sad, scandalous, sickening, stinking, terrible, tragic, unbearable, unsatisfactory, woeful, wretched, afflictive, godawful, horrifying, pitiable |
| Antonyms: | cheerful, delightful, excellent, good, happy, shameless |
* = informal/non-formal usage
| Main Entry: | depressing |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | discouraging, upsetting |
| Synonyms: | black, bleak, dismal, distressing, dreary, funereal, gloomy, heartbreaking, hopeless, joyless, melancholy, mournful, oppressive, sad, somber, daunting, dejecting, disheartening, dispiriting, melancholic, saddening |
| Antonyms: | cheering, encouraging, happy |
| Main Entry: | disquieting |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | upsetting |
| Synonyms: | annoying, bothersome, distressing, disturbing, irritating, perplexing, troublesome, worrying, disconcerting, perturbing, troubling, unnerving, unsettling, vexing |
| Antonyms: | calming, pleasing, soothing, settling |
| Main Entry: | dissatisfactory |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | unsatisfactory |
| Synonyms: | bad, damaged, deficient, disappointing, distressing, inadequate, insufficient, lame, mediocre, offensive, poor, rotten, unacceptable, unsuitable, unworthy, useless, displeasing, junky, no good, not satisfying, not up to par, unsatisfying |
| Main Entry: | doleful |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | depressing |
| Synonyms: | afflicted, cheerless, crestfallen, dejected, depressed, dismal, dispirited, distressing, dolorous, down, down in the mouth*, downcast, downhearted, dreary, forlorn, funereal, gloomy, lamentable, lugubrious, melancholy, mournful, painful, piteous, pitiful, plaintive, rueful, sad, somber, sorrowful, woebegone, woeful, wretched, cast down, dirgeful, dolent, grieving |
| Antonyms: | cheerful, elated, glad, gleeful, happy, joyful |
* = informal/non-formal usage
| Main Entry: | dolorous |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | miserable, anguished |
| Synonyms: | afflicted, calamitous, deplorable, dire, distressing, doleful, grievous, harrowing, lamentable, lugubrious, melancholy, mournful, painful, plaintive, regrettable, rueful, sad, sorrowful, woebegone, woeful, wretched, afflictive, dolent, dolesome, dolorific, heart-rending, ruthful |
| Antonyms: | cheery, happy, hopeful |
| Main Entry: | dreadful |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | horrible, frightening |
| Synonyms: | abominable, alarming, appalling, atrocious, awful, bad, beastly, creepy*, dire, distressing, fearful, formidable, frightful, frozen, ghastly, grievous, grim, gross*, hideous, icky*, lousy, mean, monstrous, rotten, shameful, shocking, spooky, terrible, terrific, tragic, tremendous, wicked, godawful, grody, horrendous, horrific, shuddersome |
| Antonyms: | pleasant, pleasing, welcomed, wonderful |
* = informal/non-formal usage
| Main Entry: | embarrassing |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | humiliating, shaming |
| Synonyms: | awkward, confusing, delicate, difficult, disagreeable, distressing, disturbing, equivocal, impossible, inconvenient, inopportune, perplexing, puzzling, sensitive, shameful, sticky, ticklish, touchy, tricky, troublesome, uncomfortable, uneasy, unpropitious, unseemly, worrisome, bewildering, compromising, discomfiting, discommoding, discommodious, disconcerting, distracting, exasperating, incommodious, mortifying, rattling, troubling, upsetting |
| Antonyms: | comfortable, unshameful |
| Main Entry: | grievous |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | severe, painful; serious |
| Synonyms: | agonizing, appalling, atrocious, calamitous, damaging, deplorable, dire, dismal, disquieting, distressing, disturbing, dreadful, egregious, flagrant, glaring, grave, harmful, heavy*, heinous, hurtful, injurious, intolerable, lamentable, monstrous, mournful, offensive, onerous, oppressive, outrageous, pathetic, pitiful, sad, shameful, sharp, shocking, sorrowful, taxing, tough, tragic, troublesome, unbearable, villainous, weighty*, afflicting, heart-rending, upsetting, wounding |
| Antonyms: | good, harmless, pleasant |
* = informal/non-formal usage
| Main Entry: | harrowing |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | dangerous, frightening |
| Synonyms: | agonizing, alarming, chilling, distressing, disturbing, excruciating, heartbreaking, nerve-racking, painful, soaring, terrifying, heart-rending, racking, tearing, tormenting, torturing, torturous, traumatic |
| Antonyms: | calming, pleasant, pleasing, unfrightening |
| Main Entry: | heartbreaking |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | disappointing |
| Synonyms: | affecting, agonizing, bitter, calamitous, cheerless, deplorable, dire, distressing, grievous, joyless, lamentable, moving, pitiful, poignant, regrettable, sad, touching, tragic, unfortunate, afflictive, heart-rending |
| Antonyms: | exhilarating, heartwarming, joyous, wonderful |
| Main Entry: | heartrending |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | arousing deep sympathy |
| Synonyms: | agonizing, distressing, doleful, excruciating, harrowing, heartbreaking, moving, piteous, pitiful, sad, touching, tragic, heartsickening, tear-jerking |
| Main Entry: | hurtful |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | injurious, cruel |
| Synonyms: | bad, cutting, damaging, dangerous, deadly, deleterious, destructive, detrimental, disadvantageous, distressing, evil, harmful, malicious, mean, mischievous, nasty, nocuous, noxious, ominous, pernicious, poisonous, prejudicial, spiteful, unkind, aching, afflictive, hurting, upsetting, wounding |
| Antonyms: | assisting, harmless, helpful, helping, kind, nice, aiding, relieving |
| Main Entry: | insufferable |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | horrible, intolerable |
| Synonyms: | detestable, distressing, dreadful, impossible, outrageous, painful, unacceptable, unbearable, unspeakable, insupportable, unendurable |
| Antonyms: | delightful, endurable, happy, pleasant, tolerable, sufferable |
| Main Entry: | lamentable |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | upsetting, miserable |
| Synonyms: | awful, bad, calamitous, deplorable, dire, dirty, distressing, doleful, dolorous, grievous, grim, heartbreaking, lousy, low, lugubrious, meager, mean, melancholy, mournful, pitiful, plaintive, poor, regretful, rotten, rueful, sad, sorrowful, stinking, tragic, unfavorable, unfortunate, unsatisfactory, woeful, wretched, afflictive, god-awful, hurting |
| Antonyms: | cheering, fortunate, good, lucky, satisfactory |
| Main Entry: | mournful |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | sorrowful |
| Synonyms: | bereft, cheerless, depressed, disconsolate, distressing, doleful, forlorn, grief-stricken, grievous, heartbroken, lamentable, pitiful, sad, woeful, anguished, dolent, full of sorrow, grieving, in mourning, in pain, in sorrow, sombre |
| Main Entry: | nettlesome |
| Part of Speech: | adjective |
| Definition: | irritating |
| Synonyms: | annoying, bothersome, burdensome, distressing, disturbing, irksome, troublesome, trying, vexatious, aggravating, exasperating, nagging, vexing |
Roget's 21st Century Thesaurus, Third Edition
Copyright © 2009 by the Philip Lief Group.
Cite This Source
Copyright © 2009 by the Philip Lief Group.
Cite This Source
Copyright © 2009, Dictionary.com, LLC. All rights reserved.

