stricken

adjective

strick·​en ˈstri-kən 

1

a

: afflicted or overwhelmed by or as if by disease, misfortune, or sorrow

b

: made incapable or unfit

rescuers were sent to the stricken ship

2

: hit or wounded by or as if by a missile

the deer had been stricken by an arrow

Examples of stricken in a Sentence

I saw her stricken face looking up at us.

Recent Examples on the Web

Satellite images taken Thursday by Planet Labs PBC analyzed by The Associated Press showed the stricken destroyer upright and floating. —Arkansas Online, 7 June 2025

The stricken destroyer was the country’s newest warship and was meant to be a triumph of North Korea’s ambitious naval modernization effort. —Mike Valerio, CNN Money, 31 May 2025

By remarkable chance, a nurse who happened to be passing by noticed the commotion and helped Karim to use a defibrillator — located in the changing rooms — on his stricken brother. —Tom Williams, New York Times, 21 Apr. 2025

An Associated Press reporter, one of the many national news outlets now covering the trial, documented how stricken Rosemary appeared. —Susannah Cahalan, Rolling Stone, 17 Apr. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English striken, from past participle of striken to strike

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing stricken

• conscience-stricken
• grief-stricken
• panic-stricken
• planet-stricken
• poverty-stricken

Rhymes for stricken

• chicken
• likin
• quicken
• sicken
• thicken
• indican

Kids Definition

stricken

adjective

strick·​en ˈstrik-ən 

1

: troubled with disease, misfortune, or sorrow

2

: hit or wounded by or as if by an object that was thrown