Synonyms of illness

illness

noun

ˈil-nəs 

1

as in disease

an abnormal state that disrupts a plant's or animal's normal bodily functioning

suffered from a mysterious illness that left her weak and tired all the time

Synonyms & Similar Words

• disease
• ailment
• ill
• sickness
• fever
• condition
• disorder
• infection
• malady
• bug
• attack
• infirmity
• distemper
• ail
• complication
• plague
• trouble
• complaint
• affection
• distemperature
• contagion
• contagious disease
• debility
• lameness
• epidemic
• bout
• unsoundness
• feebleness
• spell
• pestilence
• malaise
• sickliness
• weakness
• unwellness
• unhealthiness
• fit
• decrepitude
• contagium
• matter
• pest
• frailness
• pip

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• health
• wellness
• fitness
• soundness
• wholeness
• robustness
• wholesomeness
• shape
• healthiness
• heartiness
• fettle

2

as in sickness

the condition of not being in good health

prone to illness as a child, he was sent to a western ranch with the expectation that it would toughen him up

Synonyms & Similar Words

• sickness
• ailment
• disease
• disorder
• indisposition
• dysfunction
• unsoundness
• unhealthiness
• condition
• trouble
• weakness
• malady
• malaise
• disfunction
• invalidism
• debility
• upset
• infirmity
• lameness
• invalidity
• feebleness
• hypochondria
• decrepitude
• sickliness
• sickishness
• affliction
• frailness
• weakliness

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• health
• wellness
• recovery
• rehabilitation
• convalescence
• healing
• soundness
• recuperation
• wholeness
• healthiness
• rehab
• wholesomeness
• fitness
• mending
• shape
• comeback
• strength
• rally
• vitality
• vigor
• toughness
• stamina
• hardiness
• welfare
• heartiness
• robustness
• ruggedness
• well-being
• bloom
• fettle
• snapback
• flush
• lustiness
• weal
• vigorousness
• flushness

Examples of illness in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

In late June, Young called off his summer tour with Crazy Horse midway through due to illness. —Andy Greene, Rolling Stone, 4 Sep. 2024

Ingrid, a successful writer, first hears of Martha’s illness at a signing event for her most recent book. —Stephanie Zacharek, TIME, 3 Sep. 2024

Garth Greenwell’s latest novel finds the language to capture the ineffable human experience of serious illness. —Walt Hunter, The Atlantic, 3 Sep. 2024

Part of the problem, the authors note, is that the study ignored some variables that are known to influence HRV, like alcohol intake, illness, and menstrual cycle. —Alex Hutchinson, Outside Online, 19 Aug. 2024