The disease afflicts an estimated two million people every year.
the South was afflicted by a severe drought
Recent Examples on the WebThe foreclosure and seizure of the building provide fresh evidence that financial maladies continue to afflict the Bay Area office market in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.—George Avalos, The Mercury News, 13 May 2024 Miller likely carried the trait for sickle cell anemia and could have passed it on to a biological child, but Miller himself wasn’t afflicted with the disease, Litchtsinn said.—Nichole Manna, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 7 May 2024 See all Example Sentences for afflict
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'afflict.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Middle English afflihten "to excite, become distressed," probably verbal derivative of affliht, aflyght "disturbed, upset," borrowed from Latin afflīctus, past participle of afflīgere "to knock or strike down, ruin, distress severely," from ad-ad- + flīgere "to strike down" — more at profligate entry 1
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