1
: feeling pain : hurt
2
: expressing or involving pain
a pained expression
with pained surprise
Examples of pained in a Sentence
She wore a pained expression on her face.
He truly looked pained when he heard the news.
Recent Examples on the Web
The process took time, as the filmmaker wrote at a deliberate and emotionally acute pace, imbuing each page with playful language and the pained irony of a rich inner life set against a more mundane existence.
—
Ben Croll, Variety, 14 May 2024
The verdict ended a grisly monthlong trial that included a pained and detailed examination of Buckner’s mangled corpse.
—Jakob Rodgers, The Mercury News, 13 May 2024
There was an exhausted James, tripping down the lane, losing the ball, hitting the hardwood, lying prone on the court for several pained minutes while 19,000 screamed above him in delight.
—Bill Plaschke, Los Angeles Times, 21 Apr. 2024
The song is a waltz, heavy on strings and keyboard, with Flores almost screaming the refrain in his pained twang.
—Josh Crutchmer, New York Times, 10 Apr. 2024
Anna Sawai speaks volumes with every pained look on Mariko’s face.
—Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 27 Feb. 2024
The coolest collegiate women’s basketball player on the planet routinely produces plays so picturesque, every smudge is briefly met with a pained annoyance that inspires her to retrieve the brush and swirl anew.
—Houston Mitchell, Los Angeles Times, 25 Mar. 2024
Sitting next to his wife, Jennifer Lopez, Ben Affleck slumped back in his courtside seat with a pained look on his face.
—Danny Emerman, The Mercury News, 17 Mar. 2024
Her excellent new Eternal Sunshine is a bold personal statement, with her most inventive, pained, reflective songs.
—Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone, 13 Mar. 2024
Ben Croll, Variety, 14 May 2024
The verdict ended a grisly monthlong trial that included a pained and detailed examination of Buckner’s mangled corpse.
—Jakob Rodgers, The Mercury News, 13 May 2024
There was an exhausted James, tripping down the lane, losing the ball, hitting the hardwood, lying prone on the court for several pained minutes while 19,000 screamed above him in delight.
—Bill Plaschke, Los Angeles Times, 21 Apr. 2024
The song is a waltz, heavy on strings and keyboard, with Flores almost screaming the refrain in his pained twang.
—Josh Crutchmer, New York Times, 10 Apr. 2024
Anna Sawai speaks volumes with every pained look on Mariko’s face.
—Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 27 Feb. 2024
The coolest collegiate women’s basketball player on the planet routinely produces plays so picturesque, every smudge is briefly met with a pained annoyance that inspires her to retrieve the brush and swirl anew.
—Houston Mitchell, Los Angeles Times, 25 Mar. 2024
Sitting next to his wife, Jennifer Lopez, Ben Affleck slumped back in his courtside seat with a pained look on his face.
—Danny Emerman, The Mercury News, 17 Mar. 2024
Her excellent new Eternal Sunshine is a bold personal statement, with her most inventive, pained, reflective songs.
—Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone, 13 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'pained.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near pained
Cite this Entry
“Pained.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pained. Accessed 20 May. 2024.
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