heartbreaking

adjective

heart·​break·​ing ˈhärt-ˌbrā-kiŋ How to pronounce heartbreaking (audio)
Synonyms of heartbreakingnext
1
: causing intense sorrow or distress
heartbreaking news
a heartbreaking defeat
2
: producing an intense emotional reaction or response
heartbreaking beauty
heartbreakingly
ˈhärt-ˌbrā-kiŋ-lē How to pronounce heartbreaking (audio)
adverb
a heartbreakingly tragic movie

Synonyms of heartbreaking

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Examples of heartbreaking in a Sentence

She wrote a heartbreaking story about the death of her grandfather. It was heartbreaking to know that there was nothing I could do. The team suffered another heartbreaking defeat.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
This is one of the most difficult and heartbreaking scenes our officers and investigators have ever encountered. — Michael Sinkewicz , Robert McGreevy, FOXNews.com, 10 Oct. 2026 All of which makes Animals’s failure that much more heartbreaking and enraging. — Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 8 Oct. 2026 The end result is a sharp, unapologetic art-house novel full of gravitas, humor and heartbreaking revelations about the Black American experience and the thousand and one ways our nation can shatter Black souls. — Literary Hub, 8 Oct. 2026 Now, all of this follows Parton’s longtime driver, Jason Pirro, opening up about her heartbreaking death. — Allison Degrushe, StyleCaster, 7 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for heartbreaking

Word History

First Known Use

1591, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of heartbreaking was in 1591

Rhymes for heartbreaking

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Browse Nearby Words

heartbreaker
heartbreaking
heartbroken
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Cite this Entry

“Heartbreaking.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/heartbreaking. Accessed 14 Oct. 2026.

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