exhausting

exhausting — adjective

1. causing such great tiredness that you have no strength or energy left for furthe

1.adjectiveB1
Definition

causing such great tiredness that you have no strength or energy left for further activity

Example

Moving the heavy boxes up three flights of stairs was exhausting for Bilal.

predicative: [activity] + be + exhausting

The three-hour statistics exam was exhausting, and Elena could barely think afterwards.

Common collocations
  • exhausting day
  • exhausting work
  • exhausting journey
  • exhausting schedule
  • exhausting task
  • exhausting experience
  • exhausting week
Synonyms
  • tiring

    less strong and more general; every exhausting activity is tiring, but not every tiring activity is exhausting

  • draining

    emphasises the feeling of energy being slowly taken away; often used for emotional or mental fatigue

  • taxing

    emphasises the amount of effort or concentration needed rather than the tiredness that results

  • wearisome

    more formal; suggests boredom and monotony as well as tiredness

Antonyms
  • refreshing

    making you feel energetic and restored again

  • energising

    giving you more energy rather than taking it away

Grammar Patterns

exhausting + noun (e.g., an exhausting day)

be + exhausting (e.g., the work is exhausting)

find + [activity] + exhausting (e.g., I found the journey exhausting)

Usage Note

Use 'exhausting' to describe the activity or thing that causes tiredness, not the person who feels tired (use 'exhausted' for the person). It is stronger than 'tiring': an exhausting activity leaves you with almost no energy, whereas a tiring activity simply makes you want to rest. Common with verbs be and find.

Common Mistakes

I am exhausting after the hike.
I am exhausted after the hike.
'exhausting' describes the activity (the hike was exhausting), not how you feel; use 'exhausted' for the person's state.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

All three words describe something that makes you tired, but with different emphasis. 'Tiring' is the mildest and most general — it simply means that something causes you to need rest. 'Exhausting' is much stronger: it means the activity drains almost all your energy. 'Draining' focuses on the gradual loss of emotional or mental energy, often used for difficult social situations or long periods of concentration. 'Taxing' highlights the high level of effort or demand placed on you, whether physical or mental. For example, a short walk on a sunny day might be tiring for someone who is ill, but it is not exhausting. A full day of caring for young children can be both emotionally draining and physically exhausting. A complex maths problem that takes all morning to solve could be mentally taxing.

tiring ↗drainingtaxing

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Etymology

LatinEnglish

Derived from the verb 'exhaust', which comes from Latin 'exhaustus' — the past participle of 'exhaurire' ('ex-' meaning 'out' + 'haurire' meaning 'to draw, drain'). Originally meant 'to draw out completely', like draining water from a container. By the 17th century it was being used for strength or energy, and adding the suffix '-ing' (meaning 'causing') gave the adjective 'exhausting'.