sick

adjective

\ ˈsik

How to pronounce sick (audio)

\

Definition of sick

(Entry 1 of 2)

1a(1) : affected with disease or ill health : ailing

(2) : of, relating to, or intended for use in sickness took five sick days this month a sick ward

b : queasy, nauseated sick to one's stomach was sick in the car

c : undergoing menstruation

2 : spiritually or morally unsound or corrupt

3a : sickened by strong emotion sick with fear worried sick

b : having a strong distaste from surfeit : satiated sick of flattery

c : filled with disgust or chagrin gossip makes me sick

d : depressed and longing for something sick for one's home

4a : mentally or emotionally unsound or disordered : morbid sick thoughts

b : highly distasteful : macabre, sadistic sick jokes a sick crime

5 : lacking vigor : sickly: such as

a : badly outclassed made the competition look sick

b : incapable of producing profitable yields of a crop sick soils

6 slang : outstandingly or amazingly good or impressive Rookie was phenomenal Friday. His goal was nice, but the pass to twin brother, Chris, … was downright sick.— Roy Lang III

sick

noun

Definition of sick (Entry 2 of 2)

British

: vomit sense 1

Other Words from sick Synonyms & Antonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about sick

Keep scrolling for more

Examples of sick in a Sentence

Adjective

He is at home sick in bed. She is sick with the flu. I'm too sick to go to work. The medicine just made me sicker. The sickest patients are in intensive care. My poor rosebush looks sick. She has been on the sick list all week. The way they treat people makes me sick.

Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective

Tommy Tickenhoff, his son in law, told the station that Wallace became sick after drinking scotch from a minibar. — Rosa Flores, CNN, "After mysterious tourist deaths and shooting of David Ortiz, Dominican tourism officials seek to reassure travelers," 12 June 2019 David Harrison, 45, became sick and later died after drinking a soda from the minibar at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino resort last July while celebrating his anniversary. — Steve Helling, PEOPLE.com, "Penn. Woman Died Last Year at Same Dominican Resort as 3 Others -- and FBI and CDC Are Investigating," 12 June 2019 Illness begins one to 10 days after exposure, but most people will start feeling sick after three to four days. — Rebekah Tuchscherer, USA TODAY, "Check your freezer: Kroger recalls ground beef and ribeye due to potential health hazard," 10 June 2019 On something of a lark, in the early 1990s the pair injected anti-CD3 into a mouse model of diabetes, before the animals had become sick. — Jennifer Couzin-frankel, Science | AAAS, "In milestone trial, experimental drug delays type 1 diabetes," 9 June 2019 But earlier this year, panic broke out after rumors swirled that polio vaccinations were causing children to become sick. — Washington Post, "Hundreds of children in Pakistan have been infected with HIV. Used needles could be to blame.," 7 June 2019 The climbers cruised through the high camp, at about 10,500 feet, but one of the climbers became sick from the altitude, which began to slow them down. — Evan Bush, The Seattle Times, "‘It’s miserable, but we’re alive’: Portland climber recounts dramatic days stranded on Mount Rainier," 6 June 2019 He was put on suicide watch, and after being cleared the next day, became sick. — Bruce Vielmetti, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Lawsuit: Two weeks after dehydration death in jail, water cut off from another inmate," 4 June 2019 News and Politics In 2017, my mother became unexplainably sick. — Mariana Viera, Teen Vogue, "Domestic Workers Like My Mom Deserve Protection and Security," 26 Mar. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'sick.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Keep scrolling for more

Learn More about sick

Dictionary Entries near sick

sic itur ad astra

Statistics for sick

Last Updated

20 Jun 2019

Look-up Popularity

Time Traveler for sick

The first known use of sick was before the 12th century

See more words from the same century

Keep scrolling for more

More Definitions for sick

sick

adjective

English Language Learners Definition of sick

: affected with a disease or illness

: of or relating to people who are ill

informal : very annoyed or bored by something because you have had too much of it

See the full definition for sick in the English Language Learners Dictionary

sick

adjective

\ ˈsik

\

sicker; sickest

Kids Definition of sick

1 : affected with disease or illness : not well

2 : of, relating to, or intended for use in or during illness sick pay

3 : affected with or accompanied by nausea The bobbing of the boat made me feel sick.

4 : badly upset by strong emotion I was sick with worry.

5 : annoyed or bored of something from having too much of it We were sick of his whining.

6 : filled with disgust or anger Such gossip makes me sick.

sick

adjective

\ ˈsik

\

Medical Definition of sick

1a : affected with disease or ill health

b : of, relating to, or intended for use in sickness a sick ward

c : affected with nausea : inclined to vomit or being in the act of vomiting sick to one's stomach was sick in the car

2 : mentally or emotionally unsound or disordered

Keep scrolling for more

WORD OF THE DAY

gritty

showing courage and determination

Test Your Vocabulary

Words for Summer: A Quiz

Which of the following words means “of or relating to summer”?

Name That Thing

Test your visual vocabulary with our 10-question challenge!

TAKE THE QUIZ

Word Winder's CrossWinder

Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.

TAKE THE QUIZ