heartrending

/ˈhɑrtˌrɛndɪŋ/
adjective
  1. Causing great sadness or emotional pain; extremely distressing.
    • The documentary showed heartrending images of families affected by the earthquake.
    • She told a heartrending story about losing her childhood home in a fire.
    • The abandoned puppy's whimper was so heartrending that everyone wanted to adopt it.
What does "heartrending" mean? | whatsthatwordmean | whatsthatwordmean