as in afflicting
to cause persistent suffering to
plagued by a cough for all of last week
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Recent Examples of plaguing
Or why this situation remains indicative of bigger issues plaguing our country, then and now?
—
David Fear, Rolling Stone, 6 Sep. 2025
While the problems plaguing humanity — from political strife to poverty to natural disasters — might seem overwhelming, Dorantes said the property’s history illustrates how much the world can actually change.
—Angie Leventis Lourgos, Chicago Tribune, 5 Sep. 2025
Simply put, the social and political issues plaguing cities in California are usually not found in this multicultural community where veterans & public safety officers display special license plates and civic pride is welcomed – a law abiding, nonjudgemental, live & let live culture.
—Kenneth G. Winans, Forbes.com, 26 Aug. 2025
Hoaxes have been plaguing the nation for years, including at schools, grocery stores, office buildings and airports − anywhere large groups of people gather.
—Amanda Lee Myers, USA Today, 26 Aug. 2025
Inappropriate fan behavior plaguing the WNBA this season has seemingly bled into the NFL.
—Paulina Dedaj, FOXNews.com, 23 Aug. 2025
The findings, described in July in the journal Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, may also help to solve a puzzle plaguing the standard model of cosmology.
—Keith Cooper, Space.com, 22 Aug. 2025
Those problems have included a resurgence of out-of-stocks (a problem that was plaguing Target when Cornell took the reins in 2014 but had been overcome); long wait times at checkout registers; and what Saunders says are increasingly messy stores.
—Phil Wahba, Fortune, 20 Aug. 2025
Other issues are plaguing the market as well, including a high valuation and massive concentration in a few megacap tech names.
—Fred Imbert, CNBC, 19 Aug. 2025
David Fear, Rolling Stone, 6 Sep. 2025
While the problems plaguing humanity — from political strife to poverty to natural disasters — might seem overwhelming, Dorantes said the property’s history illustrates how much the world can actually change.
—Angie Leventis Lourgos, Chicago Tribune, 5 Sep. 2025
Simply put, the social and political issues plaguing cities in California are usually not found in this multicultural community where veterans & public safety officers display special license plates and civic pride is welcomed – a law abiding, nonjudgemental, live & let live culture.
—Kenneth G. Winans, Forbes.com, 26 Aug. 2025
Hoaxes have been plaguing the nation for years, including at schools, grocery stores, office buildings and airports − anywhere large groups of people gather.
—Amanda Lee Myers, USA Today, 26 Aug. 2025
Inappropriate fan behavior plaguing the WNBA this season has seemingly bled into the NFL.
—Paulina Dedaj, FOXNews.com, 23 Aug. 2025
The findings, described in July in the journal Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, may also help to solve a puzzle plaguing the standard model of cosmology.
—Keith Cooper, Space.com, 22 Aug. 2025
Those problems have included a resurgence of out-of-stocks (a problem that was plaguing Target when Cornell took the reins in 2014 but had been overcome); long wait times at checkout registers; and what Saunders says are increasingly messy stores.
—Phil Wahba, Fortune, 20 Aug. 2025
Other issues are plaguing the market as well, including a high valuation and massive concentration in a few megacap tech names.
—Fred Imbert, CNBC, 19 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for plaguing
Verb
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Those who dismissed intersectionality saw such policies as little more than allowing the disadvantaged to commit crimes without consequences to make up for past inequities, afflicting crime victims from the same disadvantaged communities.—
John Scott Lewinski,
The Washington Examiner,
5 Sep. 2025
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Americans live shorter lives than their European equivalents, McClatchy News reported in April, but the trend of stagnant life expectancy appears to be afflicting European nations the same, according to the study.—
Irene Wright,
Miami Herald,
2 Sep. 2025
Verb
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For 25 years, Chavism has co-opted Venezuela's infrastructure for its own enrichment, persecuting journalists and opposition, wrecking the economy, and leaving its citizens in poverty.—
Kristina Foltz,
MSNBC Newsweek,
4 Sep. 2025
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In July, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for two of the Taliban’s top leaders, accusing them of persecuting women and girls in Afghanistan, which the group dismissed.—
Astha Rajvanshi,
NBC news,
5 Aug. 2025
Verb
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And while politicians know that there are costs to besieging an independent central bank – financial markets may react negatively or inflation may flare up – short-term control of a powerful policy tool can prove irresistible.—
Ana Carolina Garriga,
The Conversation,
26 Aug. 2025
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Also great for very, very expensively besieging castles.—
Evan AckermanErico Guizzo,
IEEE Spectrum,
29 Jan. 2016
Verb
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Jamie Simpson of Covington was sentenced in March to 60 years in prison for holding his wife captive and torturing her for hours before barricading himself inside her home in a lengthy standoff with police.—
Quinlan Bentley,
The Enquirer,
3 Sep. 2025
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Emmett was just 14 when he was kidnapped from his great-uncle’s house by two White men who later admitted to beating and torturing the teen before shooting him in the head and throwing his body into the Tallahatchie River, weighed down by a 75-pound cotton gin fan.—
Rebekah Riess,
CNN Money,
31 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Plaguing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/plaguing. Accessed 11 Sep. 2025.
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