as in numbness
a lack of emotion or emotional expressiveness
a man of remarkable phlegm, never showing enthusiasm nor displeasure
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Recent Examples of phlegm
With just enough codeine to wash the phlegm away, Veeze folds slapstick one-liners into audacious flexes like origami.
—
Pitchfork, 30 Sep. 2025
The second is having either 10 or more pack years of smoking, or symptoms of cough, phlegm and trouble breathing.
—Katia Hetter, CNN Money, 28 Aug. 2025
Diagnosis of Legionnaires’ disease is made via chest X-ray, urine test and lab analysis of a phlegm sample.
—Melissa Rudy, FOXNews.com, 20 Aug. 2025
How brown phlegm looks can vary from person to person.
—Mark Gurarie, Health, 15 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for phlegm
Pitchfork, 30 Sep. 2025
The second is having either 10 or more pack years of smoking, or symptoms of cough, phlegm and trouble breathing.
—Katia Hetter, CNN Money, 28 Aug. 2025
Diagnosis of Legionnaires’ disease is made via chest X-ray, urine test and lab analysis of a phlegm sample.
—Melissa Rudy, FOXNews.com, 20 Aug. 2025
How brown phlegm looks can vary from person to person.
—Mark Gurarie, Health, 15 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for phlegm
Recent Examples of Synonyms for phlegm
Noun
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Pay attention, however, to warning signs such as numbness, tingling, sharp pain, or next-day joint swelling, Wickham added.—
Danielle Zickl,
Health,
26 Feb. 2026
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Her sleep was getting worse, and the tingling numbness in her hands returned.—
Sarah Boden,
NPR,
26 Feb. 2026
Noun
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The emptiness was an eerie reminder of how the country felt during Covid-19.—
Emma Graham,
CNBC,
3 Mar. 2026
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In another photographer’s hands, Atget’s subjects, which show how thought and vision can work in tandem with emptiness, would likely be only a backdrop to the drama of humanity.—
Hilton Als,
New Yorker,
2 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Makio’s relationship with Shingo is rich and complicated, revealing new vulnerabilities in a character whose initially somewhat off-putting in her coldness.—
Wilson Chapman,
IndieWire,
20 Feb. 2026
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Ideal snowmaking conditions today require a dewpoint temperature – the combination of coldness and humidity – of around 28 F (-2 C) or less.—
Sunshine Swetnam,
The Conversation,
3 Feb. 2026
Noun
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The impossibility of keeping up breeds apathy and stymies opposition.—
Steve Chapman,
Chicago Tribune,
4 Mar. 2026
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After decades of apathy--which has pushed the nation to a fiscal precipice--some officials are now reaching across the aisle to propose solutions.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
2 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Phlegm.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/phlegm. Accessed 10 Mar. 2026.
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