How to Use ordeal in a Sentence

ordeal

noun
  • The ordeal delayed the game briefly as players dropped to the field.
    — Howard Koplowitz | [email protected], al, 15 Sep. 2023
  • The whole ordeal has been a huge boost for the younger Brandon.
    — Aj Willingham, CNN, 17 July 2022
  • The whole ordeal took about half an hour, and there were tears.
    — Hamish Bowles, Vogue, 25 Apr. 2024
  • Killing is what kicked off this whole ordeal in the first place.
    — Larisha Paul, Rolling Stone, 29 Jan. 2025
  • First day on the snow, the Olympics, and surviving the ordeal to just get here.
    — Lori Nickel, USA TODAY, 5 Feb. 2022
  • By the time the ordeal was over, Kilbane says she was hooked.
    — Gretchen Cuda Kroen, cleveland, 17 Jan. 2023
  • Add the stress of a fish fight, and trout can have a tough time surviving the ordeal.
    — Morgan Lyle, Field & Stream, 13 July 2023
  • Still, the ordeal was enough for Dubrow to threaten leaving the show.
    — Tatiana Tenreyro, The Hollywood Reporter, 25 July 2024
  • After the ordeal, the assailant dropped the victim at her car and left.
    — Teri Figueroa, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Jan. 2024
  • And even those who feel the process was fair can often find it an ordeal.
    — Kevin Baxter, Los Angeles Times, 30 Nov. 2023
  • But the whole ordeal may have been too much for Speaker Gillett.
    — Carl Hulse, New York Times, 5 Jan. 2023
  • The ordeal ended when dawn came and the bats retreated to the attic.
    — Marlene Lenthang, NBC News, 31 Oct. 2023
  • Their 6-year-old son was miles away, safe and sound during the whole ordeal.
    — Greg Rosalsky, NPR, 23 Jan. 2025
  • The whole ordeal has left her feeling changed for the better.
    — Shania Russell, EW.com, 18 Dec. 2024
  • Minter said the ordeal with Brookside changed his life.
    — Ashley Remkus | [email protected], al, 10 Feb. 2022
  • Belle stayed on the phone with her father throughout the ordeal.
    — Mike Cason | [email protected], al, 13 Jan. 2023
  • The republic got through the Trump ordeal, but only by the skin of our teeth.
    — Mark Medish, The New Republic, 30 Nov. 2022
  • The father said his son lost his jacket, and that the boys' tent broke during the ordeal.
    — Abigail Adams, Peoplemag, 6 Mar. 2023
  • The ordeal prompted Haines to reach out to McCarthy's reps.
    — EW.com, 14 June 2024
  • That, for me, has been the biggest takeaway from this whole ordeal.
    — Dr. Marcus Collins, Forbes, 18 Dec. 2024
  • The deal would spare Boeing the ordeal of a public trial.
    — David Koenig, Fortune, 8 Aug. 2024
  • That episode was the start of my ongoing health ordeal.
    — Carmen Cusido, refinery29.com, 20 June 2022
  • Their first meeting was a love-at-first-sight ordeal—at least on John's end.
    — Sabrina Park, Harper's BAZAAR, 21 Apr. 2022
  • Check out this video and audio from the heart-racing ordeal.
    — Alexandra Meeks, CNN, 11 May 2022
  • Just like the rest of the Twitterverse, musicians have had some thoughts about the ordeal.
    — Hannah Dailey, Billboard, 21 Apr. 2023
  • Those in Lewiston are hoping to be able to heal after the ordeal.
    — Perry Stein, Washington Post, 28 Oct. 2023
  • Throughout the ordeal, Ryan said, an American flag waved stiffly in the 25-knot wind from the sub’s mast.
    — San Diego Union-Tribune, 22 May 2022
  • Goldberg-Polin said that the support of so many had been their source of strength during the ordeal of the past months nine months.
    — Sharon Altshul, Sun Sentinel, 19 July 2024
  • Goldberg shared screenshots from the group chat in his article about the ordeal, including one in which Waltz appears to respond to news of an airstrike with three emojis: a fist, an American flag and fire.
    — Charles Trepany, USA TODAY, 25 Mar. 2025
  • Throughout the ordeal, doctors emphasized the complexity of his condition, given his age, lack of mobility (requiring a wheelchair) and the removal of part of a lung as a young man.
    — Colleen Barry and Trisha Thomas, Los Angeles Times, 29 Mar. 2025

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'ordeal.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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