vicissitude

noun

Definition of vicissitudenext
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.

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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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for vicissitude
  1. ordeal
  2. gauntlet
  3. misfortune
  4. privation
Noun
  • Two other roommates in the house at the time survived the ordeal.
    — Nicole Acosta, PEOPLE, 15 July 2026
  • Spieth immediately went to Kuchar, explaining the entire ordeal.
    — Brody Miller, New York Times, 14 July 2026
Definition of ordeal
Noun
  • With nature’s molecule at the core, the drug candidate then faces the same gauntlet of clinical trials as any other, a process that often spans a decade or more.
    — Steve Midway, STAT, 16 July 2026
  • The National Mall seems to be wrapped in a variety of fencing, some of it in place for construction reasons, some of it to create a security gantlet for the July 4 celebration.
    — Matt Viser, The Atlantic, 2 July 2026
Definition of gauntlet
Noun
  • This is the idea — which is debated online — that men who date women from the Kardashian/Jenner family often face personal or professional misfortune.
    — Martha Ross, Mercury News, 9 July 2026
  • Hell House takes its time spinning the tale of misfortune that befalls the central investigators.
    — Declan Gallagher, Entertainment Weekly, 7 July 2026
Definition of misfortune
Noun
  • Still, the mesh grids spreading across Haiti's countryside prove that the country's energy story may transcend the privation.
    — Ken Silverstein, Forbes.com, 1 July 2026
  • These are people who still carry within them memories of war, occupation, and stretches of extreme privation.
    — Thomas Chatterton Williams, The Atlantic, 28 June 2026
Definition of privation

Browse Nearby Words

viciousness
vicissitude
vicissitudes
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“Vicissitude.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/vicissitude. Accessed 17 Jul. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on vicissitude

Nglish: Translation of vicissitude for Spanish Speakers

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