harrowing
/ˈhæɹəʊ.ɪŋ/adjective, noun, verb
harrowing is spelled H-A-R-R-O-W-I-N-G: 9 letters and 3 syllables. It appears 1.2 times per million words in written English, the 26,420th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, harrowing means “Causing pain or distress; harrying” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in harrowing?
| Letters | 9: H-A-R-R-O-W-I-N-G |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 1.2 times per million words; the 26,420th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is harrowing?
Harrowing appears 1.2 times per million words in written English, the 26,420th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce harrowing?
- UK /ˈhæɹəʊ.ɪŋ/
Harrowing has 3 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-harrowing.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of harrowing
- more harrowing comparative
- most harrowing superlative
- harrowings plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does harrowing mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Causing pain or distress; harrying.
noun
- 1
The process of breaking up earth with a harrow.
The field received two harrowings.
- 2
Suffering, torment.
- 3
Ravaging; hostile incursion; spoliation; intentional widespread destruction.
- 4
Christ's ravaging or hostile incursion of Hell, conducted between his crucifixion and resurrection, in which he liberated the souls of the righteous held captive by Satan.
verb
- 1
present participle and gerund of harrow.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Harrowing in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | navrant, éprouvant |
| German | erschütternd, grauenhaft, grauenvoll, quälend , Eggen |
| Portuguese | perturbador, dilacerante |
| Spanish | angustioso, desgarrador , escarificación |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does harrowing come from?
By surface analysis, harrow + -ing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).