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painful

Syllabification: (pain·ful)
Pronunciation: /ˈpānfəl/

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Definition of painful

adjective

  • (of part of the body) affected with pain:her ankle was very painful
  • causing physical pain:a painful knock
  • causing distress or trouble:a painful experience change is inevitably slow and painful

Derivatives

painfulness

noun
Remember that the ending of painful is spelled with a single l; it is made up of the word pain plus the suffix (ending) -ful.

painful in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of painful in the British & World English dictionary

Nearby words

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