harrowing
/ˈhæɹəʊiŋ/adjective
Extremely upsetting or frightening to experience, see, or hear about.
Example sentences
- “The survivors described their harrowing escape from the flood.”
- “Watching the documentary was a harrowing experience.”
- “She wrote a harrowing account of life in the camp.”
Common with experience, ordeal, account, and story. It comes from the harrow, a spiked farm tool dragged over soil.