INSALUBRIOUS Synonyms: 21 Similar and Opposite Words

insalubrious

adjective

ˌin-sə-ˈlü-brē-əs

Definition of insalubrious

as in poisonous

bad for the well-being of the body after inhaling the insalubrious city smog for a month, I was happy to once again breathe in the fresh air of the country

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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 insalubrious The refuse rising in insalubrious piles, some taller than the pedestrians trying to avoid them, is a smelly, visceral symbol of popular outrage at the government’s plan. — Catherine Porter, New York Times, 15 Mar. 2023 Many of the area's most insalubrious haunts are long gone, and in their place mostly restaurants, which come and go. — Tom Page, CNN, 30 Jan. 2023 Exercise enjoys a health halo, justifying, for some of us, insalubrious habits. — Gretchen Reynolds, Anchorage Daily News, 26 Jan. 2023 On the site of an important 19th-century water mill, in a somewhat insalubrious part of town, is a modest looking Mosque with a beautiful new artwork. — Joanne Shurvell, Forbes, 3 Sep. 2021

Recent Examples of Synonyms for insalubrious

Adjective

Wildfire smoke contains noxious or poisonous gases and particulate matter, tiny particles that can be inhaled deep into the lungs, affecting people with respiratory problems, says the Environmental Protection Agency.

— Janet Loehrke, USA Today, 16 July 2026
How plants poisonous to dogs cause harm Not all toxic plants affect dogs the same way, but many share similar chemicals that attack the digestive system.

— Ryan Brennan, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 15 July 2026

Definition of poisonous

Adjective

From downtown Los Angeles to the San Gabriel Valley, tens of thousands were enveloped in unhealthful levels of smoke, even as some local officials told residents that the air posed no danger.

— Tony Briscoe, Los Angeles Times, 2 July 2026
The soil may contain pathogens, pesticides and other unhealthful things.

— Joan Morris, Mercury News, 9 Feb. 2026

Definition of unhealthful

Adjective

In addition to administering the toxic combination of medications, Hemphill failed to recognize and treat signs of respiratory distress, and administered the incorrect reversal medication for the kind of drug the girl had been given, Spragins wrote.

— Lillie Davidson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 16 July 2026
How many malodorously toxic episodes does that make toward the seven plagues in the Old Testament?

— Patt Morrison, Los Angeles Times, 15 July 2026

Definition of toxic

Adjective

Residents from Minnesota to Washington, DC, told CNN the noxious air has disrupted their lives, seeping into everything from their health and leisure to their businesses and family life.

— Dalia Faheid, CNN Money, 18 July 2026
The phenomenon, where smoke blots out the blue sky overhead, making the air appear milky-white or even orange, has become a relatively regular fixture of summers where out-of-control wildfires in the West bring noxious smoke downwind.

— Matthew Cappucci, Washington Post, 17 July 2026

Definition of noxious

Adjective

Work took place in the spring and early summer and the pool was refilled in June, but an algae bloom returned just days later, turning the pool a sickly green color.

— Mary Whitfill Roeloffs, Forbes.com, 26 June 2026
In the heyday of her career, her choppy hair, flat chest, sickly pallor and large darting eyes were a manic pixie dream.

— Carly Tagen-Dye, PEOPLE, 3 June 2026

Definition of sickly

Adjective

But being a teenager can be isolating, confusing, and an emotional rollercoaster—and what can start as an attempt to find friends can quickly spiral into an unhealthy obsession.

— Sherri Gordon, Parents, 10 July 2026
In an unhealthy one, the CEO speaks first, and the rest calibrate around the CEO's tone.

— Janet M Harvey, Forbes.com, 10 July 2026

Definition of unhealthy

Adjective

Employees were observed to only sanitize their gloved hands after touching insanitary surfaces and then resumed touching RTE food and various food contact surfaces.

— Daniel R. Depetris, Newsweek, 12 Jan. 2025
The company admitted that by January 2021 some employees were aware that the insanitary conditions were causing products to become contaminated.

— Kate Gibson, CBS News, 26 Feb. 2024

Definition of insanitary

Browse Nearby Words

ins

insalubrious

ins and outs

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“Insalubrious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/insalubrious. Accessed 19 Jul. 2026.

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Synonyms of insalubrious

adjective

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