noun

misery

great unhappiness, suffering, distress

The war brought misery to thousands of people.

The war brought misery to thousands of people.

Put the old dog out of its misery.

Put the old dog out of its misery.

((misery)) great unhappiness The war brought misery to thousands of people.

((to put sb./sth. out of their/its misery)) to end the suffering of sb./sth. Put the old dog out of its misery.

Synonyms: suffering, distress, unhappiness, anguish; Antonyms: joy, happiness, pleasure

From Latin 'miseria', from 'miser' meaning 'wretched'.

Think of the Stephen King novel 'Misery', where the character causes great suffering.

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