Synonyms of afflictions

afflictions

noun

plural of affliction

1

as in distresses

a state of great suffering of body or mind

she listened with deep affliction as her daughter told her about the latest trouble she was in

Synonyms & Similar Words

• distresses
• pains
• agonies
• miseries
• anguishes
• torments
• tribulations
• woes
• tortures
• straits
• discomforts
• sorrows
• pangs
• travails
• hurts
• hardships
• racks
• dangers
• troubles
• excruciations
• heartbreaks
• heartaches
• difficulties
• emergencies
• aches
• crucibles
• trials
• rigors
• asperities
• crosses
• stitches
• throes
• jeopardies
• twinges
• pinches

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• consolations
• comforts
• solaces
• alleviations
• eases
• reliefs
• securities
• assuagements
• peaces
• well-beings

2

as in curses

a source of harm or misfortune

alcohol has been his affliction ever since he took his first drink at the age of 12

Synonyms & Similar Words

• curses
• threats
• banes
• nemeses
• scourges
• dangers
• menaces
• risks
• hazards
• perils
• troubles
• pitfalls
• snags
• jinxes
• hoodoos
• booby traps
• hexes
• catches

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• benefits
• goods
• blessings
• advantages
• gifts
• windfalls
• aids
• help
• felicities
• reliefs
• consolations
• supports
• comforts
• boons
• pleasures
• joys
• assistances
• godsends
• delights
• mannas
• securities
• solaces
• defenses
• safeguards
• protections
• shields
• guards
• safeties
• armors

3

as in demons

a source of persistent emotional distress

suffered from afflictions that only a professional therapist could deal with

Synonyms & Similar Words

• demons
• terrors
• torments
• hang-ups
• bugaboos
• bugbears
• ogres
• hobgoblins
• bogeys
• bêtes noires

4

as in injuries

something that causes loss or pain

cronyism and corruption are afflictions on the body politic

Synonyms & Similar Words

• injuries
• damages
• harms
• detriments
• hurts
• injustices
• indignities
• insults
• disabilities
• outrages
• affronts
• wrongs
• impairments
• wounds
• lesions
• disfigurements
• mayhem
• beatings
• mutilations
• offenses
• swellings
• scars
• darts
• disablements
• disservices
• abrasions
• bruises
• contusions
• scratches
• strains
• ruptures
• lacerations
• burns
• defacements
• gashes
• concussions
• scalds
• scrapes
• bumps
• boo-boos
• sears
• cuts
• chafes
• scathes

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• recoveries
• remedies
• cures
• fixes

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of afflictions

People commonly used tobacco to treat many ailments, including indigestion, respiratory problems, pain and loathsome mouth afflictions. — Katherine Ott, The Conversation, 2 July 2026

They were considered to have strange physical afflictions or weak mental attitudes, and some people with endocrine diseases were even dismissed as ‘freaks’ and heckled in circuses or locked away in institutions. — Literary Hub, 20 May 2026

Nearly 90 percent of respondents reported injuries or illness on the job — afflictions that spanned heat stroke to exposure to pesticides. — Ashley Miznazi, Miami Herald, 4 May 2026

Even as Steph Curry missed two months with persistent knee soreness and swelling, as Moses Moody and Jimmy Butler were lost for the year with knee injuries, as the team trotted out 41 different starting lineups as other members of the supporting cast dealt with various afflictions. — Joseph Dycus, Mercury News, 12 Apr. 2026

But those maladies have nothing against the ones presented in this list—six afflictions that many of us have come to know all too well. — Encyclopedia Britannica, 2 Apr. 2026

Deprived of the Sun, Australians acquire afflictions more commonly associated with northern Scandinavia, like vitamin D deficiencies and seasonal affective disorder, only all year-round. — Big Think, 31 Mar. 2026

Chibale knew that this wasn't the case in Africa, a continent that struggles with its own afflictions, alongside limited funding, infrastructure and technical know-how. — Ari Daniel, NPR, 22 Mar. 2026

None of these afflictions are exclusive to older moms, but age is a big factor in how serious both are. — Heather Grossmann, Parents, 11 Mar. 2026