as in severity
biting sharpness of feeling or expression
I was surprised by the virulence of the criticism
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Recent Examples of virulence
The diminished virulence that the pathogen evolved in response to more of its hosts dying potentially caused these earlier plague pandemics to fizzle out.
—
Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 29 May 2025
The scale score measures the virulence of cancerous cells and tissues in the body, with a higher score meaning the cancer is more likely to spread quickly, as Biden’s has already done.
—Dave Goldiner, New York Daily News, 19 May 2025
In Canada, modest supply management policies keep farmgate and farmer pay prices higher, while disincentivizing the buildout of fast-paced, crowded and large scale production facilities at the heart of avian flu virulence.
—Errol Schweizer, Forbes, 24 Mar. 2025
Everything about the movement surprised political observers: its virulence, its magnitude, its provincial origins, its apparent lack of structure and leadership, and its adamant refusal to be co-opted by existing political parties and unions.
—Arthur Goldhammer, Foreign Affairs, 12 Dec. 2018
See All Example Sentences for virulence
Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 29 May 2025
The scale score measures the virulence of cancerous cells and tissues in the body, with a higher score meaning the cancer is more likely to spread quickly, as Biden’s has already done.
—Dave Goldiner, New York Daily News, 19 May 2025
In Canada, modest supply management policies keep farmgate and farmer pay prices higher, while disincentivizing the buildout of fast-paced, crowded and large scale production facilities at the heart of avian flu virulence.
—Errol Schweizer, Forbes, 24 Mar. 2025
Everything about the movement surprised political observers: its virulence, its magnitude, its provincial origins, its apparent lack of structure and leadership, and its adamant refusal to be co-opted by existing political parties and unions.
—Arthur Goldhammer, Foreign Affairs, 12 Dec. 2018
See All Example Sentences for virulence
Recent Examples of Synonyms for virulence
Noun
-
Charlie and Pim are loyal employees of Smiling Friends, a mysterious business that exists solely to assist people with their problems, regardless of their severity.—
PC Magazine,
PC Magazine,
3 Oct. 2025
-
Prosecutors have recommended an 11-year sentence, citing Combs’s lack of remorse and the severity of harm inflicted.—
Hannah Parry,
MSNBC Newsweek,
3 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Perhaps the bitterness refers to the alimony check?—
Jason O'Bryan,
Robb Report,
4 Oct. 2025
-
The Phillies have tasted enough bitterness in previous Octobers to know that.—
Matt Gelb,
New York Times,
2 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
The monthlong celebration comes at a crucial time, as transgender youths continue to face mounting legislative attacks and social hostility nationwide.—
Duante Beddingfield,
Freep.com,
1 Oct. 2025
-
Police officers eventually began to line tee boxes as the weekend progressed, though that also did not assuage the hostility.—
Matt Moret,
New York Times,
30 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
More than avoiding malice, we are called to take responsibility for the impact of our words.—
Andrew Weinstein,
Time,
12 Sep. 2025
-
Understand that controlling behaviors may stem from fear and insecurity rather than malice.—
Mark Travers,
Forbes.com,
11 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
These maggots vomit and excrete illuminated threads of bile to entice tiny insects to their deaths.—
Ann Patchett,
New Yorker,
29 Sep. 2025
-
The Didi and Gogo that Sparks and Shannon created were full of blood and bile, real people with — no matter how obscured in its details by time and circumstance — a long and winding relationship.—
Sara Holdren,
Vulture,
29 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
The virulency of Covid-19 trained even those of us who shop locally out of principal to purchase online.—
Marc Peruzzi,
Outside Online,
2 Mar. 2021
Cite this Entry
“Virulence.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/virulence. Accessed 8 Oct. 2025.
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