# painful

/ˈpeɪnfəɫ/ (US) · /pˈeɪnfəl/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/painful
Updated: 2026-06-19

## Senses

### 1. physical hurt

adjective · CEFR B1

causing physical pain in your body.

For teachers: causing physical suffering or discomfort to the body.

- My ankle is still very painful after I tripped on the stairs yesterday.
- The patient described a sharp, painful sensation in his lower back that intensified whenever he attempted to lift heavy objects.

### 2. emotional distress

adjective · CEFR B1

causing mental or emotional sadness and upset.

For teachers: evoking mental or emotional distress, grief, or discomfort.

- It was a painful memory that she didn't like to talk about.
- The documentary offered a painful look at the lives of refugees, forcing the audience to confront the harsh realities of displacement.

### 3. difficult or slow

adjective · CEFR B2

requiring a lot of effort or being very slow and difficult.

For teachers: characterised by effort, difficulty, or tediousness.

- The recovery was a long and painful process for the whole family.
- The transition to the new software system was a painful experience for the staff, involving weeks of troubleshooting and overtime.

### 4. very bad or annoying

adjective · CEFR B2 · Informal

extremely boring, bad, or embarrassing to watch or experience.

For teachers: colloquially used to describe something of exceptionally poor quality or something that is socially awkward to witness.

- The comedian's jokes were so bad that the whole show was painful to watch.
- The local theatre production was frankly painful, with actors frequently forgetting their lines and missing their cues throughout the first act.

## Examples

- My arm is still very painful after the fall.
- It was painful for her to talk about the accident so soon after it happened.
- The recovery process was slow and painful, requiring months of physical therapy before he could walk without assistance.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.