ailment

noun

ail·​ment ˈāl-mənt 

1

: a bodily disorder or chronic disease

a stomach ailment

2

: unrest, uneasiness

an emotional ailment

Synonyms of ailment

• disease
• illness
• ill
• condition
• fever
• sickness

Examples of ailment in a Sentence

She suffered from a chronic back ailment.

The doctor treated him for a variety of ailments.

Recent Examples on the Web

Medics treat heat stroke and other ailments from trailers while an announcer calls out an endless stream of names of people separated from their families. — Jane Arraf, NPR, 10 Aug. 2026

During his time in the minors, Mayer dealt with hip, back, shoulder and wrist ailments. — Justice Delos Santos, Mercury News, 9 Aug. 2026

As the judge noted in her ruling, the ongoing controversy has as much to do with when and how the diagnostic gospels were compiled as the scientific validity of the ailment. — Sonja Sharp, Los Angeles Times, 8 Aug. 2026

The Raiders are managing a knee ailment that caused McCoy to drop to the fourth round in April’s NFL Draft. — Sam Warren, New York Times, 7 Aug. 2026

Word History

Etymology

ail entry 1 + -ment

First Known Use

1606, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for ailment

• bailment
• curtailment
• derailment
• entailment

Kids Definition

ailment

noun

ail·​ment ˈāl-mənt 

: a bodily disorder : sickness

Medical Definition

ailment

noun

ail·​ment ˈā(ə)l-mənt 

: a bodily disorder or chronic disease