1
: a bodily disorder or chronic disease
a stomach ailment
2
: unrest, uneasiness
an emotional ailment
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
For centuries, such conditions have not even been considered to be health issues in the same way that physical ailments are, and have been dismissed as hysteria or even weakness.
—
Alice Park, Time, 30 Sep. 2025
Most neurologists started medical school wanting to help patients and to get to the root of their ailments, but that isn’t always feasible within the current medical system.
—The New Yorker, New Yorker, 29 Sep. 2025
If that spat was a microdose, Longstaff’s performance was a 90-minute saline drip of all-action brilliance that cured any ailment.
—Beren Cross, New York Times, 29 Sep. 2025
Hynes said Kaprizov had begun taking antibiotics for the ailment and it is not expected to be a long-term issue.
—Jess Myers, Twin Cities, 27 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for ailment
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Alice Park, Time, 30 Sep. 2025
Most neurologists started medical school wanting to help patients and to get to the root of their ailments, but that isn’t always feasible within the current medical system.
—The New Yorker, New Yorker, 29 Sep. 2025
If that spat was a microdose, Longstaff’s performance was a 90-minute saline drip of all-action brilliance that cured any ailment.
—Beren Cross, New York Times, 29 Sep. 2025
Hynes said Kaprizov had begun taking antibiotics for the ailment and it is not expected to be a long-term issue.
—Jess Myers, Twin Cities, 27 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for ailment
Cite this Entry
“Ailment.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ailment. Accessed 7 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
ailment
noun
ail·ment
ˈā(ə)l-mənt 
: a bodily disorder or chronic disease
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