as in to rot
to go through decomposition
a week after the battle the corpses of the fallen were still festering in the fields
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Recent Examples of fester
Dan Goodin, ArsTechnica, 25 Aug. 2025
Now a Congressman, state officials, and families are demanding accountability and bringing legal actions, saying that Roblox has allowed its platform to become a festering hub for horrific child exploitation.
—Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 25 Aug. 2025
As buyers remained wary of sky-high prices, unbudging mortgage rates and festering economic uncertainty, the typical home sold last month spent 43 days on the market—the longest span for any July since 2015—before buyer and seller closed a deal on it, according to the real estate brokerage Redfin.
—Giulia Carbonaro, MSNBC Newsweek, 19 Aug. 2025
Cortez Masto’s clash with Booker during Police Week offered a rare public window into those festering strategic disputes.
—Burgess Everett, semafor.com, 7 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for fester
Verb
These serious problems in the judiciary’s approach to cybersecurity have been able to fester for decades because the judiciary covers up its own negligence, has no inspector general and repeatedly stonewalls congressional oversight.
—Dan Goodin, ArsTechnica, 25 Aug. 2025
Now a Congressman, state officials, and families are demanding accountability and bringing legal actions, saying that Roblox has allowed its platform to become a festering hub for horrific child exploitation.
—Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 25 Aug. 2025
As buyers remained wary of sky-high prices, unbudging mortgage rates and festering economic uncertainty, the typical home sold last month spent 43 days on the market—the longest span for any July since 2015—before buyer and seller closed a deal on it, according to the real estate brokerage Redfin.
—Giulia Carbonaro, MSNBC Newsweek, 19 Aug. 2025
Cortez Masto’s clash with Booker during Police Week offered a rare public window into those festering strategic disputes.
—Burgess Everett, semafor.com, 7 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for fester
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fester
Verb
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People are assigning themselves homework to combat brain rot and improve their attention spans.—
Daniel Wine,
CNN Money,
15 Sep. 2025
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Warm conditions produce more food for these microbes, which thrive in rotting vegetation, as is found in tropical wetlands and thawing Arctic permafrost.—
Katherine Bourzac,
Quanta Magazine,
15 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Policymakers can have an impact on access by limiting package sizes for high-risk drugs and expanding the use of blister packages that require a person to pop out each pill individually, Hays said.—
Madeline Holcombe,
CNN Money,
9 Sep. 2025
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Swelling or small blisters. Darker or lighter patches of skin after the rash fades, called post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation (PIH).—
Leslie Baumann,
Miami Herald,
4 Sep. 2025
Verb
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O’Steen bludgeoned Marissa Grimes, dug a shallow grave for her under his house in west Fort Worth and for 10 days lived above where police later sawed open the floor to expose Grimes’ decomposing 135-pound body, prosecutors have argued that the evidence shows.—
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
12 Sep. 2025
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Two people discovered badly decomposed human remains while doing a walkthrough of a home for sale in Ohio, police told news outlets.—
Mitchell Willetts,
Kansas City Star,
11 Sep. 2025
Noun
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The construction team that dug it up only found the still's boil pot, so the Vendome craftsmen needed to build an entirely new top.—
Maggie Menderski,
The Courier-Journal,
12 Sep. 2025
-
Bring 6 cups water to a boil in a large pot.—
Faye Levy,
Oc Register,
9 Sep. 2025
Verb
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These plans disintegrated in the wake of the October 7 Hamas attacks on southern Israel, which killed 1,200 people and resulted in the taking of 251 hostages.—
Melanie Goodfellow,
Deadline,
8 Sep. 2025
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But explaining Dyer’s motivations in the face of a disintegrating family portrayed in & Sons remains a bit of an uphill climb for Nighy.—
Etan Vlessing,
HollywoodReporter,
7 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Research suggests that pimple patches aren't effective on cystic acne, pustules, or blackheads.—
Cristina Mutchler,
Verywell Health,
9 Sep. 2025
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Even worse, Neal later developed strange-looking face pustules, which were truly concerning.—
Alyce Collins,
MSNBC Newsweek,
11 July 2025
Verb
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Colorful spots on Cheyava Falls contain the mineral greigite, which some microbes on Earth excrete, and vivianite, which is often found around decaying organic matter.—
David W. Brown,
New Yorker,
13 Sep. 2025
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The rest resides for a time in lumber, which in the case of redwood is mostly used for picnic tables, fences and decks that all too soon decay and release the remaining carbon.—
John P. O’Brien,
Mercury News,
13 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Scabies causes small, pimple-like skin bumps, which can be intensely itchy and uncomfortable.—
Carrie Madormo,
Health,
10 Sep. 2025
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Research suggests that pimple patches aren't effective on cystic acne, pustules, or blackheads.—
Cristina Mutchler,
Verywell Health,
9 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Fester.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fester. Accessed 18 Sep. 2025.
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