CANKER Synonyms: 133 Similar and Opposite Words

canker 1 of 2

verb

Definition of canker

as in to poison

to lower in character, dignity, or quality such shameless ambulance chasing cankers the legal profession

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

canker

2 of 2

noun

as in rot

Related Words

Dissimilar Words

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 canker

Noun

Recognize bacterial canker by the dead branches covered by sap drippings. — Calvin Finch, San Antonio Express-News, 13 Feb. 2026 This damages the trunk and leaves an ugly, elongated canker that invites insects and stresses the tree, leading to stunted growth, sparse foliage, and stem dieback. — Luke Miller, Better Homes & Gardens, 11 Jan. 2026 Bacterial plant diseases include speck (a winter-surviving infection that attacks tomatoes), canker (which damages fruit trees including those producing apples and peaches), and blight (which rots melons, cucumbers, pumpkins, squash, peppers, tomatoes, eggplants, beans, and more). — New Atlas, 10 Jan. 2026 Even the most superb body begins to diminish in a person’s early 30s, thanks to the onset of sarcopenia, which sounds like a canker but means the incremental decline of muscle mass. — Sally Jenkins, The Atlantic, 18 Dec. 2025 See All Example Sentences for canker

Recent Examples of Synonyms for canker

Verb

The video cuts to Swift living out exactly what Johnson’s been living through, revealing that Farrell poisoned Swift, leading to her death.

— Nicole Fell, HollywoodReporter, 27 Sep. 2026
In her other case, Hogan has been accused of trying to falsify a paternity test in a custody battle with her ex-fiancé, who was not the same man who was allegedly poisoned.

— Justin Muszynski, Hartford Courant, 25 Sep. 2026

Definition of poison

Noun

The atmosphere persists even when the characters are off the air, as if to suggest that the seeping rot of the show has metastasized into every moment of their lives.

— Justin Chang, New Yorker, 25 Sep. 2026
The onset of rot is creeping closer and the meat may even begin to stink.

— Jack Hennessy, Outdoor Life, 23 Sep. 2026

Definition of rot

Verb

But, in Hagwon, Lee does not seem interested in the ways in which her diplomatic, kind, generous characters might be corrupted.

— Sanjena Sathian, Vulture, 22 Sep. 2026
And by engaging with these powerful militaries, the group reinforced its self-image as a major regional player that was uniquely capable of liberating the Muslim world from corrupting American and Israeli influence.

— April Longley Alley, Foreign Affairs, 11 Sep. 2026

Definition of corrupt

Noun

Unlike fragile physical qubits, which suffer rapid calculation decay from environmental noise, logical qubits group multiple physical qubits together using software protocols to ensure computational stability and accuracy.

— Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 25 Sep. 2026
To capitalize on this elevated volatility while maintaining a bullish long-term stance, traders can structure a unique strategy that collects time decay to finance a directional bet.

— Michael Khouw, CNBC, 25 Sep. 2026

Definition of decay

Verb

Simply douse it with mildly alkaline water, and the polymer begins degrading, breaking down within minutes.

— New Atlas, New Atlas, 21 Sep. 2026
Enhancing an enzyme’s plastic-degrading speed typically required extensive genetic modifications that compromised its structural integrity.

— Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 21 Sep. 2026

Definition of degrade

Verb

Relations between the two countries have since deteriorated, partly over Abiy’s desire for sovereign access to the Eritrean seaport of Assab.

— ABC News, ABC News, 21 Sep. 2026
The latest contingent is arriving as Haiti confronts a deteriorating security and humanitarian environment and struggles to organize its first general elections in more than a decade.

— Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 19 Sep. 2026

Definition of deteriorate

Noun

The Yolo County parents of a 7-day-old infant found living in squalor in a tent under an overpass have pleaded not guilty to the child endangerment charges against them, records show.

— Fedor Zarkhin, Los Angeles Times, 18 Sep. 2026
Bryant was charged in February 2025 with first-degree child abuse after investigators found that her children — at the time ages 12, 13, and 15 — had been living alone for at least four years in a townhouse on Lydia Lane, trapped in squalor.

— Andrea May Sahouri, Freep.com, 1 Sep. 2026

Definition of squalor

Browse Nearby Words

canisters

canker

cankered

See all Nearby Words

Podcast

Cite this Entry

Style

“Canker.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/canker. Accessed 29 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of canker

verb

noun

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Podcast

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster on canker

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

argot

Popular in Grammar & Usage

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Popular in Wordplay

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'

Popular

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List

Games & Quizzes