variants
also disfunction
as in disease
impaired or abnormal functioning (as of a body part)
She's suffered from minor brain dysfunction since the accident.
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Recent Examples of dysfunction
What’s not open to interpretation, based on information known in 2021 and certainly with what is apparent today, is that dysfunction ruled the day in the time of Frost and Moos.
—
Mitch Sherman, New York Times, 13 Feb. 2026
But interviews with retiring lawmakers show their frustration with the dysfunction and toxicity of the current Congress.
—Jennifer Lynn McCoy, The Conversation, 11 Feb. 2026
Their New Orleans vacation goes sideways thanks to accusations of infidelity, group dysfunction, and too much absinthe.
—Ilana Gordon, Entertainment Weekly, 10 Feb. 2026
Their frenetic dysfunction was matched by a Nets team equally lost in the post-deadline tumult.
—Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 10 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for dysfunction
Mitch Sherman, New York Times, 13 Feb. 2026
But interviews with retiring lawmakers show their frustration with the dysfunction and toxicity of the current Congress.
—Jennifer Lynn McCoy, The Conversation, 11 Feb. 2026
Their New Orleans vacation goes sideways thanks to accusations of infidelity, group dysfunction, and too much absinthe.
—Ilana Gordon, Entertainment Weekly, 10 Feb. 2026
Their frenetic dysfunction was matched by a Nets team equally lost in the post-deadline tumult.
—Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 10 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for dysfunction
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dysfunction
Noun
-
After whooping cough vaccinations declined in Dallas County over the last year, the preventable disease spiked to the highest numbers of infections officials have seen in over a decade, Huang said.—
Lauren Mascarenhas,
CNN Money,
19 Feb. 2026
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Harm reduction can encompass a range of practices, including handing out free needles to slow the spread of disease, and many local leaders credit some of those efforts with recent drops in fatal overdoses.—
Blake Nelson,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
19 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Nick has battled substance abuse since adolescence and reportedly suffers from schizoaffective disorder, which resulted in a mental health conservatorship for over a year, ending in 2021.—
New York Daily News,
Boston Herald,
21 Feb. 2026
-
Social media addiction is not recognized as an official disorder in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, which is the standard reference psychiatrists and other mental health practitioners use to assess and treat patients.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
21 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Dysfunction.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dysfunction. Accessed 22 Feb. 2026.
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