penible

comparative more penible · superlative most penible

1. obsoletepainstaking; assiduous

   The encroachments of these men, who are aware of their power, often has rendered the residence of a European among the tribes, the most penible state of existence.

   1840, Joel Samuel Polack, Manners and Customs of the New Zealanders

   1 more example

   This was the most "penible" portion of the walk, for although not very steep, the loose and slippery boulders, which covered the surface, made it so insecure that great care was necessary.

   1862, Mrs. Henry Freshfield, A Summer Tour in the Grisons and Italian Valleys of the Bernina