exhausting
ihg-ZAWS-tihng
Exhausting (adjective) means Extremely tiring; draining all your energy. Example: “Moving house in one day was completely exhausting.”
adjective
1
Extremely tiring; draining all your energy.
"Moving house in one day was completely exhausting."
"Looking after twin toddlers is exhausting work."
How to use exhausting
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishSo tiring it leaves you completely drained.
Easily confused with
Common pairings
physically exhausting
mentally exhausting
an exhausting day
Vocabulary Flow
Build your vocabulary from words like exhausting.
Vocabulary Flow serves the next word, and the next — meaning, pronunciation and an example each time. Practice at your level, or learn English in your own language.
Start vocabulary practice
Word forms
- Comparative
- more exhausting
- Superlative
- most exhausting
Fill the gap
Can you complete this real example?
Moving house in one day was completely _____.
Etymology
From "exhaust" (ultimately from Latin exhaurire, "to draw out completely") plus the "-ing" ending.
Synonyms
View more →Antonyms
Related words
Rhymes for exhausting
See all rhymes for exhausting →Frequently asked questions
What does “exhausting” mean?
The word “exhausting” means extremely tiring; draining all your energy. In plain terms, so tiring it leaves you completely drained.
How do you pronounce “exhausting”?
“Exhausting” is pronounced ihg-ZAWS-tihng (/ɪɡˈzɔ(ː)stɪŋ/ in IPA).
How do you use “exhausting” in a sentence?
Here is “exhausting” used in a sentence: “Moving house in one day was completely exhausting.”
What part of speech is “exhausting”?
“Exhausting” is an adjective.
Where does the word “exhausting” come from?
The word “exhausting” comes from Latin. From "exhaust" (ultimately from Latin exhaurire, "to draw out completely") plus the "-ing" ending.
Is “exhausting” a common word?
“Exhausting” is an uncommon word in modern English, usually learned at around the B2 level.
What is the difference between exhausting and tiring?
Exhausting and tiring both describe activities that drain energy, but exhausting is stronger, implying that all of one's energy has been used up completely. Tiring can describe mild fatigue after routine effort, while exhausting suggests a more extreme or draining experience, such as an exhausting workday or an exhausting journey.
What is the difference between exhausting and exhausted?
Exhausting describes something that causes extreme tiredness, such as an exhausting hike, while exhausted describes the resulting state of a person who has been drained of energy. In other words, exhausting is used for the cause and exhausted for the effect: an exhausting day leaves you exhausted.
What are common collocations with exhausting?
Exhausting is often paired with nouns like day, journey, process, or experience, as in an exhausting day at work or an exhausting process of negotiation. It frequently appears with intensifiers such as physically exhausting or mentally exhausting to specify the type of fatigue involved.
