infirmities

noun

plural of infirmity
as in diseases
an abnormal state that disrupts a plant's or animal's normal bodily functioning an 18th-century quack who specialized in those mysterious infirmities that are known only to the idle rich

Synonyms & Similar Words

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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 infirmities Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle said protecting elderly people from predators who take advantage of their mental or physical infirmities is a priority of her office. — Carol Marbin Miller, Miami Herald, 16 Apr. 2026 Because of his infirmities, he is housed in a medical unit of the jail, away from the general population. — Maer Roshan, HollywoodReporter, 10 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for infirmities
  1. diseases
  2. ailments
  3. illnesses
  4. ills
  5. sicknesses
  6. fevers
Noun
  • The New York Times recently wrote about a study that revealed that one in four NFL players develop brain diseases like CTE.
    — Mirin Fader, New York Times, 11 Sep. 2026
  • Hormonal changes from perimenopause and menopause touch numerous parts of a woman’s health and raise the risk of certain diseases like osteoporosis, diabetes and heart disease.
    — Helen Carefoot, Flow Space, 10 Sep. 2026
Definition of diseases
Noun
  • Starting next year, Illinois will have new safeguards in place to prevent parents from being wrongly accused of child abuse or neglect when their children visit a doctor or hospital emergency room for unexplained injuries or ailments.
    — Jeremy Gorner, Chicago Tribune, 8 Sep. 2026
  • The existing international surveillance and response systems for these ailments are limited in scope.
    — Anna Nelson, Foreign Affairs, 4 Sep. 2026
Definition of ailments
Noun
  • There will be a seventh bell-tolling this year, for the thousands who have since died by suicide, or from cancer and other illnesses caused by the ravages of terrorism.
    — Jill Lepore, New Yorker, 6 Sep. 2026
  • The initiative aims to bring positivity and hope to children battling critical illnesses.
    — Stephanie Nolasco, FOXNews.com, 5 Sep. 2026
Definition of illnesses
Noun
  • North Carolina Bobby Petrino has fixed all the offensive ills.
    — The Athletic College Football Staff, New York Times, 9 Sep. 2026
  • But unlike Transcription or George Saunders’s Vigil, the year’s other novel about a rich old man on his way to the underworld, this book doesn’t try to diagnose our collective ills.
    — Emma Alpern, Vulture, 7 Sep. 2026
Definition of ills
Noun
  • And while children, the elderly and those with certain sicknesses or medications are most susceptible to heat illness – these temperatures affect everyone.
    — Ashley Miznazi, Miami Herald, 17 July 2026
  • At the end of the day, both doctors agree that hotel stays shouldn’t deter people from traveling altogether, since there are always ways to proactively minimize exposure and subsequent sicknesses.
    — Joey Skladany, Travel + Leisure, 30 June 2026
Definition of sicknesses
Noun
  • Both were found to have respiratory issues and fevers of a hundred and one.
    — Ruby Cramer, New Yorker, 31 Aug. 2026
  • How can parents prevent their children from bringing home sniffles, coughs and fevers?
    — Hali Smith, Idaho Statesman, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of fevers

Browse Nearby Words

infirmary
infirmities
infirmity
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Cite this Entry

“Infirmities.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/infirmities. Accessed 14 Sep. 2026.

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