afflicted 1 of 2

Definition of afflictednext

afflicted

2 of 2

verb

past tense of afflict

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of afflicted
Adjective
Some of the bikers pouring into the area are coming from distant states far more afflicted. — CBS News, 10 Aug. 2020
Verb
While the epicenter was located in Nantou County in central Taiwan, serious damage afflicted residents across the island as roads buckled, bridges collapsed and landslides destroyed everything in their path. — Desiree Anello, PEOPLE, 21 Sep. 2026 Here’s my Sunday postgame piece on a miserable condition that has afflicted Dolphins fans for years, and our plea to Jon-Eric Sullivan to fix it. — Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 20 Sep. 2026 The afflicted can feel very strongly about them, strongly believe them, even though there is no convincing reason for holding that thought. — Donna Vickroy, Chicago Tribune, 18 Sep. 2026 However, the network was afflicted with major issues in its first year, including executive turnover and poor ratings. — Daysia Tolentino, Entertainment Weekly, 17 Sep. 2026 The global food system is afflicted by uncertainty across many domains—weather, supply chains, labor, trade, and beyond. — Anna Nelson, Foreign Affairs, 4 Sep. 2026 Over 600,000 women a year in America are afflicted with postpartum depression in America, research shows. — Dominic Patten, Deadline, 1 Sep. 2026 Weiss has since learned he and his uncles weren’t uniquely afflicted. — Lilian Raji, Forbes.com, 21 Aug. 2026 Those afflicted would tremble and jerk around, lose the ability to stand or swallow, and, after many months of slow suffering, die. — David Remnick, New Yorker, 17 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for afflicted
Adjective
  • This project, classical in form, presents a sweeping vision of how the past has led to the present, an epic for this troubled age, a dispatch from a roiling Europe that nonetheless reflects back the difficult beauty of human existence.
    — Craig Morgan Teicher, Literary Hub, 1 Oct. 2026
  • Which is what troubled regulators even more about this particular outbreak.
    — CNN Money, CNN Money, 1 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • Fashion’s relationship with art is a conundrum that’s plagued the minds of some of its greatest auteurs.
    — José Criales-Unzueta, Vanity Fair, 3 Oct. 2026
  • Taking the Long Way was never going to be country enough for some, but that was something the Chicks were always plagued with, even in their early busking days on the streets of Dallas.
    — Marissa R. Moss, Rolling Stone, 2 Oct. 2026
Adjective
  • The site near the Spanish border draws millions of pilgrims each year, especially sick and disabled believers hoping for a cure from the famed spring water in the Lourdes grotto where the visions purportedly occurred.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 28 Sep. 2026
  • Carey believes Hope Florida is an example of how disabled people’s welfare is disregarded.
    — Justin Garcia, Miami Herald, 28 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • Those governments provide assurances that people won’t be persecuted or tortured, federal attorneys said.
    — Lindsay Whitehurst, Los Angeles Times, 29 Sep. 2026
  • Also, some immigration cases involve people seeking asylum because they are being persecuted by a foreign government and releasing a person’s full name could be considered sensitive or even dangerous.
    — Laura Tillman, Hartford Courant, 11 Sep. 2026
Adjective
  • Briogeo Destined for Density Serum The Briogeo Destined for Density Serum is a lightweight liquid formula that thickens feeble strands, plumps roots, and rapidly spurs new hair growth.
    — Sophie Wirt, InStyle, 17 Sep. 2026
  • There has to be something more than this, looking feeble against a rookie lefty with average stuff followed by the worst bullpen in baseball.
    — Matt Gelb, New York Times, 16 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • Sarsour denies committing those crimes and his attorneys say he was tortured and coerced into confessing in both instances.
    — Cybele Mayes-Osterman, Los Angeles Times, 30 Sep. 2026
  • To succeed, the Sparrows would need to sell the story, even if tortured.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 30 Sep. 2026
Adjective
  • But according to Galloway, shortly before his death in 1989, a friend came upon an infirm Olivier watching one of Leigh’s films.
    — Hadley Hall Meares, Vanity Fair, 21 Sep. 2026
  • Earlier this month, Nancy Guthrie, the elderly and infirm mother of Today show co-anchor Savannah Guthrie, was violently taken from her home in Tucson, Arizona.
    — Tony Maglio, HollywoodReporter, 24 Feb. 2026
Verb
  • In recent months, Israeli settlers have repeatedly besieged the village of Qusra, defying orders from the authorities to leave the area and trying to force Palestinian families, some of whom are also American citizens, out.
    — Oren Liebermann, CNN Money, 30 Aug. 2026
  • There has been a spate of Israeli settler violence in the West Bank, and the village of Qusra has been besieged by Israeli settlers for weeks.
    — F. Brinley Bruton, NBC news, 29 Aug. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Afflicted.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/afflicted. Accessed 4 Oct. 2026.

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