as in poisonous
containing or contaminated with a substance capable of injuring or killing a living thing
leaving poisoned food to try to kill the roaches
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in tainted
to affect slightly with something morally bad or undesirable
poisoning the minds of impressionable children with ethnic hatred
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in polluted
to make unfit for use by the addition of something harmful or undesirable
exhaust fumes poisoning the air
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in degraded
to lower in character, dignity, or quality
this party partisanship poisons the national debate we should be having about this urgent problem
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in turned
to cause to have often negative opinions formed without sufficient knowledge
malicious rumors had poisoned many church members against the new pastor
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of poisoned
Antonia Blyth, Deadline, 17 Feb. 2026
In 2016, dozens of residents from a subdivision about 20 miles from the Boarmans’ home sued oil giant ConocoPhillips, alleging that years of improper oil field waste disposal had poisoned their drinking water.
—Nick Bowlin, The Frontier, 16 Feb. 2026
He was previously poisoned with the Soviet-era nerve agent Novichok while flying from Moscow to Siberia in 2020, eventually recovering after a long period of treatment in Germany.
—CBS News, 16 Feb. 2026
Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny died in prison after being poisoned by a frog toxin, five European countries said Saturday.
—J.d. Capelouto, semafor.com, 15 Feb. 2026
Last September, Navalnaya said her team had transferred some biological samples from his body abroad, and two laboratories confirmed he had been poisoned.
—Nandika Chatterjee, Time, 14 Feb. 2026
Navalny’s widow, Yulia Navalnaya, said last year that two independent labs had found that her husband was poisoned shortly before his death.
—ABC News, 14 Feb. 2026
He had been imprisoned in an Arctic penal colony since returning to Russia in 2021 from Germany, where he had been treated after being poisoned with Novichok, a Soviet-era nerve agent.
—Catherine Nicholls, CNN Money, 14 Feb. 2026
Last year, though, the Anthropic team inadvertently poisoned its own well by allowing the Jones Foods experiment, in which Claude faked its way through retraining, into the data set.
—Gideon Lewis-Kraus, New Yorker, 9 Feb. 2026
Verb
This friend group is so poisoned.
—Antonia Blyth, Deadline, 17 Feb. 2026
In 2016, dozens of residents from a subdivision about 20 miles from the Boarmans’ home sued oil giant ConocoPhillips, alleging that years of improper oil field waste disposal had poisoned their drinking water.
—Nick Bowlin, The Frontier, 16 Feb. 2026
He was previously poisoned with the Soviet-era nerve agent Novichok while flying from Moscow to Siberia in 2020, eventually recovering after a long period of treatment in Germany.
—CBS News, 16 Feb. 2026
Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny died in prison after being poisoned by a frog toxin, five European countries said Saturday.
—J.d. Capelouto, semafor.com, 15 Feb. 2026
Last September, Navalnaya said her team had transferred some biological samples from his body abroad, and two laboratories confirmed he had been poisoned.
—Nandika Chatterjee, Time, 14 Feb. 2026
Navalny’s widow, Yulia Navalnaya, said last year that two independent labs had found that her husband was poisoned shortly before his death.
—ABC News, 14 Feb. 2026
He had been imprisoned in an Arctic penal colony since returning to Russia in 2021 from Germany, where he had been treated after being poisoned with Novichok, a Soviet-era nerve agent.
—Catherine Nicholls, CNN Money, 14 Feb. 2026
Last year, though, the Anthropic team inadvertently poisoned its own well by allowing the Jones Foods experiment, in which Claude faked its way through retraining, into the data set.
—Gideon Lewis-Kraus, New Yorker, 9 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for poisoned
Adjective
-
All parts of delphinium plants are poisonous to humans and pets.—
Kim Toscano,
Southern Living,
17 Feb. 2026
-
This was always a question of what happens to this friend group when there’s a poisonous dynamic at the center?—
Emily Longeretta,
Variety,
17 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
That means every angle needs to be screen-ready and not tainted by equipment, crew or the director.—
John Wenzel,
Denver Post,
11 Feb. 2026
-
The entire imbroglio proved hugely damaging, not only to Boohoo but also the Leicester garment industry, which was already struggling to cope with the manufacturing shift overseas before the fear of being tainted by scandal led its remaining buyers to flee en masse.—
Jasmin Malik Chua,
Sourcing Journal,
11 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Trump blamed Democrats, including Moore, for the spill that has polluted the river that cuts through Washington, DC.—
Kathryn Palmer,
USA Today,
19 Feb. 2026
-
All the money in the world isn’t going to save you when the air is polluted and the water is undrinkable.—
Voice of the People,
New York Daily News,
17 Feb. 2026
Verb
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In many cases submitted to Othram, the main challenge can be having to rely solely on significantly old remains, as in Ritchie’s case, or other pieces of evidence that have degraded over time, Othram’s CEO David Mittelman told the South Florida Sun Sentinel.—
Angie DiMichele,
Sun Sentinel,
16 Feb. 2026
-
Infrastructure in Venezuela is severely degraded, and any meaningful revival would likely require more than $100 billion in investment over a decade.—
Amena Bakr,
semafor.com,
30 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Pranks have turned into memes and other visual online jokes that barely involve active communication.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
17 Feb. 2026
-
This blend of folklore and physics effectively turned a cultural holiday into a showcase for national industrial prowess.—
Aamir Khollam,
Interesting Engineering,
17 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Power to the people is poison to the powerful.—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
10 Feb. 2026
-
Dropped in recent years because carbs are poison.—
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
22 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
In a duel of the top two teams in the West Coast Conference standings, Gonzaga (25-2, 13-1 WCC) spoiled the Broncos’ best start to a season since 1969-70.—
Jeff Faraudo,
Mercury News,
15 Feb. 2026
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The following day, nearly all of my friend’s food had spoiled, whereas mine lasted nearly all week.—
Reader Commentary,
Baltimore Sun,
13 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
The shellfish may be contaminated with norovirus, a virus that can cause severe stomach symptoms, including nausea and vomiting.—
Jenna Anderson,
Health,
20 Feb. 2026
-
The area's drinking water hasn't been contaminated, but scientists and environmental advocates say the damage could still be severe in a watershed that stretches to the Chesapeake Bay.—
Michael Copley,
NPR,
20 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Poisoned.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/poisoned. Accessed 21 Feb. 2026.
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