Synonyms of sickness

sickness

noun

ˈsik-nəs 

1

as in illness

the condition of not being in good health

she was plagued by sickness most of her adult life

Synonyms & Similar Words

• illness
• ailment
• disorder
• disease
• indisposition
• dysfunction
• unhealthiness
• unsoundness
• condition
• trouble
• weakness
• malady
• malaise
• debility
• invalidism
• upset
• infirmity
• lameness
• feebleness
• invalidity
• decrepitude
• sickliness
• hypochondria
• sickishness
• affliction
• frailness
• weakliness

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• health
• wellness
• healing
• recovery
• convalescence
• rehabilitation
• healthiness
• soundness
• wholeness
• recuperation
• wholesomeness
• fitness
• mending
• rehab
• strength
• shape
• rally
• comeback
• vitality
• vigor
• toughness
• stamina
• welfare
• hardiness
• robustness
• heartiness
• ruggedness
• well-being
• bloom
• weal
• fettle
• lustiness
• snapback
• flush
• vigorousness
• flushness

2

as in disease

an abnormal state that disrupts a plant or animal's normal bodily functioning

a sickness that resulted in the death of millions of the nation's elm trees

Synonyms & Similar Words

• disease
• illness
• ailment
• ill
• fever
• condition
• disorder
• bug
• infection
• malady
• attack
• infirmity
• distemper
• ail
• complication
• plague
• trouble
• complaint
• affection
• distemperature
• contagion
• contagious disease
• debility
• lameness
• pestilence
• feebleness
• epidemic
• unsoundness
• bout
• malaise
• sickliness
• spell
• weakness
• unhealthiness
• unwellness
• decrepitude
• fit
• contagium
• matter
• pip
• pest
• frailness

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• health
• wellness
• fitness
• soundness
• wholeness
• robustness
• wholesomeness
• shape
• healthiness
• heartiness
• fettle

3

as in nausea

a disturbed condition of the stomach in which one feels like vomiting

the sickness that many women feel during the early months of a pregnancy

Synonyms & Similar Words

• nausea
• queerness
• nauseousness
• queasiness
• squeamishness
• seasickness
• airsickness
• motion sickness
• qualm
• mountain sickness
• qualmishness
• altitude sickness
• car sickness
• morning sickness

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of sickness

There’s a mysterious sickness going around, apparently caused by a toxic fog that invisibly burns the skin of whoever comes into contact with it. — Beatrice Loayza, Variety, 9 Sep. 2026

In the case of the cyclospora outbreak, Taylor Farms initiated a recall of iceberg lettuce after reports of sickness emerged from across the country. — Dian Zhang, USA Today, 28 Aug. 2026

But one legal battle over lifesaving care drew attention in the 1960s, as sickness made its way through a Followers family in a Boise suburb. — Audrey Dutton, ProPublica, 26 Aug. 2026

Visiting different checkpoints meant my sickness excuse worked on each of them. — Carly Tagen-Dye, PEOPLE, 25 Aug. 2026