as in ordeal
a negative event or circumstance that is common to a particular setting or situation and is usually beyond one's control
The vicissitudes of medical school proved too much for the anxious student.
Related Words
Relevance
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of vicissitude
Their vicissitudes are both timely and for all time.
—
Peter Rainer, Christian Science Monitor, 17 Dec. 2025
Whatever its reputation, the OIGC is still subject to the vicissitudes of other arts organizations.
—Andrew Gilbert, Mercury News, 1 Dec. 2025
By using non-actors who have endured the vicissitudes of the world, Laxe didn’t have to develop the characters in a conventional way.
—Anne Thompson, IndieWire, 12 Nov. 2025
Renaissance has prided itself on a debt-free history, despite the vicissitudes of performing arts fundraising.
—Jim Higgins, jsonline.com, 24 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for vicissitude
Peter Rainer, Christian Science Monitor, 17 Dec. 2025
Whatever its reputation, the OIGC is still subject to the vicissitudes of other arts organizations.
—Andrew Gilbert, Mercury News, 1 Dec. 2025
By using non-actors who have endured the vicissitudes of the world, Laxe didn’t have to develop the characters in a conventional way.
—Anne Thompson, IndieWire, 12 Nov. 2025
Renaissance has prided itself on a debt-free history, despite the vicissitudes of performing arts fundraising.
—Jim Higgins, jsonline.com, 24 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for vicissitude
Recent Examples of Synonyms for vicissitude
Noun
-
In the years since the tragic sequence of events, Griffin has attempted to move forward, but the ordeal still follows him.—
Caroline Blair,
PEOPLE,
16 June 2026
-
Judge Andrew Fishkin’s ruling probably ends a months-long ordeal for the California woman, one of thousands adopted from abroad who were never granted citizenship because of bureaucratic loopholes between adoption and immigration law.—
Claire Galofaro,
Los Angeles Times,
15 June 2026
Noun
-
The gauntlet of booby traps culminating in the giant boulder that kick off Raiders is my single favorite opening sequence in a movie ever.—
Chris Nashawaty,
Entertainment Weekly,
13 June 2026
-
Objectively, running the full gauntlet of a classification’s elite is a steeper climb.—
Charles Baggarly,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
12 June 2026
Noun
-
The second chapter intertwines misfortune and impasses.—
Jacob Tanswell,
New York Times,
10 June 2026
-
So when the dog is lost in a severe storm that devastates the region and leaves many homeless, an overwhelmed Rose must balance the urgency of her search mission alongside the misfortune of others close to her.—
Guy Lodge,
Variety,
8 June 2026
Noun
-
The novel emphasizes that these conditions of privation and dispossession are themselves a vicious inheritance, that bloodshed and conquest have long characterized the story of this land.—
Rachel Vorona Cote,
Vulture,
2 June 2026
-
Meanwhile, the European settlers, underprepared for actual conditions in the region, suffered great privations, and only 1,500 remained by 1832.—
Britannica Editors,
Encyclopedia Britannica,
19 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Vicissitude.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/vicissitude. Accessed 19 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
