as in disease
an abnormal state that disrupts a plant's or animal's normal bodily functioning
half of the staff is out sick with the usual wintertime ails
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in to bother
to trouble the mind of; to make uneasy
parents who were at a loss to explain what was ailing their normally vivacious daughter
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of ail
Ben Morse,
CNN,
17 Feb. 2024
In the age of generative AI, the theft of huge troves of medical information might be even more dangerous, as our health records wind up in data sets that enable off-the-books innovation in exploiting our ails.
—
Steven Levy,
WIRED,
12 Jan. 2024
Nick Duffy,
NBC news,
22 June 2026
China has two films in the main competition, the 2025 $215m box office hit Nobody by Shui Yu, and Tana, a contemporary tale about a young woman who leaves Shanghai to support her ailing father in Inner Mongolia.
—
Melanie Goodfellow,
Deadline,
19 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for ail
Noun
What’s more, the age-old phrase the team’s fans have used to describe Detroit’s recent ails – ‘SOL’ or same old Lions – seems to have been banished for now.
—
Ben Morse,
CNN,
17 Feb. 2024
In the age of generative AI, the theft of huge troves of medical information might be even more dangerous, as our health records wind up in data sets that enable off-the-books innovation in exploiting our ails.
—
Steven Levy,
WIRED,
12 Jan. 2024
Verb
After years without sustained growth in Britain, economic headwinds linked to global conflicts and the fallout from Brexit, as well as his own electoral pledge of fiscal discipline, have left a leader who promised change with little room for major reforms or investment in ailing public services.
—
Nick Duffy,
NBC news,
22 June 2026
China has two films in the main competition, the 2025 $215m box office hit Nobody by Shui Yu, and Tana, a contemporary tale about a young woman who leaves Shanghai to support her ailing father in Inner Mongolia.
—
Melanie Goodfellow,
Deadline,
19 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for ail
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ail
Noun
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The shipment includes emergency health kits for urgent medical care, including supplies for safe births, newborn care, disease prevention and treatment, according to the United Nations.
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The rabies vaccine, if administered immediately after exposure, is nearly 100% successful at preventing the disease, according to the World Health Organization.
Verb
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For all the chatter about his choices in handbags, Haaland doesn’t seem remotely bothered.
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What bothers me is the foot-dragging, the spinning in circles, the slow degradation of these characters into annoying stereotypes.
Noun
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The women wanted physicians who were disease preventers, and doctors who were attentive to the difficulties wrought by menopause, which have been increasingly found to leave women vulnerable to other ailments.
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Imaging this week showed Brown has a stress reaction in his neck, which was in the same spot as his 2024 ailment that ultimately had been diagnosed as an osteoma (benign bone tumor).
Verb
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Those measures, however, have alarmed privacy advocates, who argue that age-gating the internet would affect all users — not just children.
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That’s alarmed the National Union of Healthcare Workers, which represents about 400 nurses and staff at two psychiatric hospitals in Sacramento.
Noun
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What Research Shows About Cancer in Dogs While there is no evidence that turkey tail shrinks tumors, the mushroom has drawn real scientific interest as a complementary therapy for serious illness.
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Harold Wheeler, a prolific and Tony-winning Broadway orchestrator, composer and conductor who for 17 seasons served as musical director for ABC’s Dancing with the Stars, died following a lengthy illness Wednesday, June 24, at his home in Los Angeles.
Verb
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He was particularly disturbed by administration officials' attempts to characterize both as domestic terrorists.
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The appeal is largely practical, since powders travel well in a bag, don’t leave hands greasy and can be dusted on without disturbing whatever’s already on your skin.
Noun
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Large protests are expected and, in a country where migration has become an easy target for people suffering from a cascade of social and economic ills, the gatherings risk becoming combustible.
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But that also eradicates a crucial option - to mount a show trial and scapegoat him for all the ills of his rule, thus absolving others.
Verb
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Recent polling from Gallup found that Americans are concerned most about housing and energy prices, including gas.
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Carter is concerned by a pop-up power plant under construction in the area to serve a data center.
Cite this Entry
“Ail.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ail. Accessed 2 Jul. 2026.
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