1
as in frail
chronically or repeatedly suffering from poor health
a sickly foal that seemed to catch everything that the other horses had
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in poisonous
bad for the well-being of the body
lungs scarred by years of exposure to the sickly air of the coal mines
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of sickly
Nevada County sheriff’s officials arrested a Grass Valley man on suspicion of animal cruelty after authorities rescued more than 200 animals from a property where some animals were found dead, sickly or emaciated.
—
Rosalio Ahumada, Sacbee.com, 14 Dec. 2025
The sergeant also reported seeing animals that looked sickly and emaciated, the sheriff's office says.
—Cecilio Padilla, CBS News, 12 Dec. 2025
For way too long, the Fabs story had been framed with a sickly sense of nostalgia — a fairy tale from the good old days.
—Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone, 24 Nov. 2025
The shy, sickly seamstress Mimi becomes the HIV-positive junkie Mimi who dances at a strip club to support her drug habit.
—Pam Kragen, San Diego Union-Tribune, 11 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for sickly
Rosalio Ahumada, Sacbee.com, 14 Dec. 2025
The sergeant also reported seeing animals that looked sickly and emaciated, the sheriff's office says.
—Cecilio Padilla, CBS News, 12 Dec. 2025
For way too long, the Fabs story had been framed with a sickly sense of nostalgia — a fairy tale from the good old days.
—Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone, 24 Nov. 2025
The shy, sickly seamstress Mimi becomes the HIV-positive junkie Mimi who dances at a strip club to support her drug habit.
—Pam Kragen, San Diego Union-Tribune, 11 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for sickly
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sickly
Adjective
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Under a cowboy hat and a long poncho, Weir looked visibly frail on stage.—
Paul Liberatore,
Mercury News,
16 Jan. 2026
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Yes, Alice, the old, frail woman the series positions as suffering from Alzheimers or dementia was the Dahlonega serial killer.—
Tony Maglio,
HollywoodReporter,
14 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Should Trump pursue this scheme of conquest, the military’s training will have to be shattered and reassembled into a destructive version of itself, as if doctors were asked to take lifesaving medicines, reconstitute them as poisonous isomers, and then administer them to patients.—
Tom Nichols,
The Atlantic,
19 Jan. 2026
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Having been burned badly by his phantom surplus in 2022, Newsom is obviously aware that a repeat would be politically poisonous.—
Dan Walters,
Mercury News,
13 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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That requires visibility below the operating system, control that persists through disruption, and recovery mechanisms that do not depend on fragile software layers.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
22 Jan. 2026
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Over time, autonomy becomes less like a fragile stunt and more like a dependable capability.—
Sanjay Srivastava,
Forbes.com,
22 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Historically America’s lawmakers addressed the human and environmental impacts of the Industrial Revolution’s transformational technology only after rivers ran with toxic chemicals and mistreated workers picketed.—
Krista Kafer,
Denver Post,
25 Jan. 2026
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One of the furthest‑along examples is a one‑time experimental gene therapy called AMT‑130, which is delivered directly into the brain to lower levels of the toxic huntingtin protein.—
William A. Haseltine,
Forbes.com,
24 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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The rest of us will sit here with Belichick, sick to our stomachs.—
Dave Hyde,
Sun Sentinel,
26 Jan. 2026
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Now, the fear is getting sick or stuck far from home.—
Christopher Elliott,
Forbes.com,
24 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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The change comes amid concerns about fireworks causing unhealthful air.—
Rong-Gong Lin II,
Los Angeles Times,
19 June 2025
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Health professionals encourage people to use lean cuts of meat because most of the fat in animal products is unhealthful saturated fat, which can raise the risk of heart disease and cancer.—
Bethany Thayer,
Detroit Free Press,
22 June 2024
Adjective
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Those who may have moved to the area after the winter of 2022, may have a pretty weak opinion of what our winters are like here.—
Terry Eliasen,
CBS News,
23 Jan. 2026
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Moreover, the notion the public will meekly accept weaker radiation standards without explanation seems foolhardy.—
Katy Huff,
Scientific American,
23 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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An unhealthy gut microbiome is also linked to a variety of health imbalances, like Alzheimer’s disease and other types of inflammation throughout the body.—
BestReviews,
Mercury News,
23 Jan. 2026
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Lifestyle factors can include tobacco use, alcohol and an unhealthy diet.—
Virginia Barreda,
Des Moines Register,
22 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Sickly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sickly. Accessed 29 Jan. 2026.
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