agonize

That gave staffers roughly a month to agonize over whether they would be on the list, some of them in public.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 4, 2026

Rather than agonize over how to restore the landscape to some former, unobtainable baseline of “natural,” officials unanimously agreed that this bold re-imagining of the coast was the best way forward among no perfect options.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 10, 2025

Refusing even a hint of introspection, she added: “We don’t agonize over what happened. We organize about what comes next.”

From Slate ● Nov. 15, 2024

When they wed, their fans swoon; when stars divorce, people agonize over what went wrong.

From Salon ● Jan. 5, 2024

I realize that for every good message, there will always be one that will agonize me.

From "I Am the Messenger" by Markus Zusak

In 1415, on the eve of challenging France at the Battle of Agincourt, he agonizes about the moral burdens of kingship.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 9, 2026

She agonizes over the loss of her relationship with Mimi, perhaps the love of her life.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 13, 2024

He agonizes over the decisions he made: Could he have saved more people?

From Seattle Times ● Aug. 14, 2023

In another, a girl agonizes while her 10-year-old sister buys a maroon lifeguard hoodie.

From New York Times ● Jul. 11, 2023

Additional copies have been filed elsewhere for posterity and safekeeping, as the desk copies often meet such gruesome fates while Chandresh agonizes over every word.

From "The Night Circus" by Erin Morgenstern

“I agonized for a long time over whether to keep that job,” she says.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 12, 2026

Faisuris Alvarez, who runs a beachside fish stand, agonized aloud over these questions without answers.

From Barron's ● Jul. 11, 2026

The players agonized, according to these people who were in touch with them.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 12, 2026

Unlike Steve, I haven’t agonized much about my bygone career or felt much of a vacuum where it once was.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 12, 2026

“It is real,” came Mrs. Maroney’s agonized reply.

From "The Detective's Assistant" by Kate Hannigan

Among them are white male entitlement versus the crushing demands of Black exceptionalism; the complicated bond linking fathers to sons; and the agonizing bravery required of mothers raising boys the world is conditioned to ostracize.

From Salon ● Oct. 5, 2026

DiFeo, the Cadillac dealer, faces what he describes as an agonizing wait for fresh models.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 29, 2026

Collins stood outside for several agonizing minutes, hearing their muffled voices.

From Slate ● Sep. 17, 2026

Inside, under flickering lights, a group of reluctant strangers is coaxed into acting out, in a converted gymnasium, a wild tale promising redemption from agonizing tragedy.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 5, 2026

“What are you talking about? That is what you’ve been agonizing over?”

From "Throne of Glass" by Sarah J. Maas