Meanings
plural agony uncles
- UKinformaluncommonSynonym of advice columnist, particularly an actually or assumed male writer of such a column.First known use 1981
The author had set himself up as a kind of literary agony uncle at the Murakami-san no Tokoro (Mr Murakami’s place) website: “After so long, I want to exchange emails with readers,” he said in January.
2015 August 13, Alison Flood, “Haruki Murakami's agony uncle answers become eight-volume book”, in The GuardianSynonyms: advice columnist, particularly an actually or assumed male writer of such a column
Synonyms & antonyms
nounSynonym of advice columnist, particularly an actually or assumed male writer of such a column.
Origin
By analogy with earlier agony aunt, from still earlier agony column.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
agony uncle. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/agony%20uncle
“agony uncle.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/agony%20uncle. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “agony uncle,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/agony%20uncle.
Source: agony uncle on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.