as in illnesses
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
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of sicknesses
And among parents, the fear of illnesses like polio, measles and other sicknesses were always present.
—
Romy Ellenbogen, Miami Herald, 18 Dec. 2025
Pathogens in human poop can remain active for a long time – over a year in outdoor environments – meaning that waste left behind today can cause severe gastrointestinal disease and other sicknesses for future visitors.
—B. Derrick Taff, The Conversation, 29 Aug. 2025
All their triumphs, all their sleepless nights, their loves and hates, their sicknesses, their schemes, their rises to power and their falls from it -- all gone.
—Paul Prather, Arkansas Online, 27 Feb. 2016
Romy Ellenbogen, Miami Herald, 18 Dec. 2025
Pathogens in human poop can remain active for a long time – over a year in outdoor environments – meaning that waste left behind today can cause severe gastrointestinal disease and other sicknesses for future visitors.
—B. Derrick Taff, The Conversation, 29 Aug. 2025
All their triumphs, all their sleepless nights, their loves and hates, their sicknesses, their schemes, their rises to power and their falls from it -- all gone.
—Paul Prather, Arkansas Online, 27 Feb. 2016
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sicknesses
Noun
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That’s different that the crisis caused when formula produced by Abbott was linked to infant deaths and illnesses in 2022.—
CNN Money,
CNN Money,
9 Nov. 2025
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For less severe illnesses, people will usually recover with rest and hydration.—
Maia Pandey,
jsonline.com,
7 Nov. 2025
Noun
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If your plants were plagued by pests or diseases during the growing season, leaving diseased plant debris in your garden allows problems to overwinter and reinfect your plants in spring.—
Lauren Landers,
Better Homes & Gardens,
11 Jan. 2026
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When making cuts, prune at a 45-degree angle to help water run off and prevent diseases.—
SJ McShane,
Martha Stewart,
10 Jan. 2026
Noun
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But, Diabanté questions, isn’t a world without strife, oppression, war, famine, poverty and all other societal ailments what humans have been struggling for all along?—
Natalie Oganesyan,
Deadline,
8 Nov. 2025
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The Heat had a few of its best players out because of injuries on Saturday, but a few others played through their ailments.—
Anthony Chiang,
Miami Herald,
8 Nov. 2025
Noun
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Certainly, in the past several years, the app has been blamed for any number of contemporary social ills.—
Naomi Fry,
New Yorker,
27 Dec. 2025
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Despite so many errors, The Information is now the paper of record on the ills of Nvidia.—
Jim Cramer,
CNBC,
21 Dec. 2025
Noun
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The high fevers, hospitalizations, and dehydration that these illnesses cause can be painful and disruptive—and, with vaccines, avoidable.—
Tom Bartlett,
The Atlantic,
7 Jan. 2026
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For example, pulse oximeters (the small clips placed on a finger to test oxygen) are less accurate on darker skin, and temperature scanners often used in clinics can under-detect fevers in Black patients.—
Essence,
Essence,
1 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Sicknesses.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sicknesses. Accessed 11 Jan. 2026.
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