affliction

noun

af·​flic·​tion ə-ˈflik-shən 

1

: a cause of persistent pain or distress

a mysterious affliction

2

: great suffering

felt empathy with their affliction

3

: the state of being afflicted by something that causes suffering

her affliction with polio

Synonyms

• agony
• anguish
• distress
• excruciation
• hurt
• misery
• pain
• rack
• strait(s)
• torment
• torture
• travail
• tribulation
• woe

Examples of affliction in a Sentence

She lost her sight and is now learning to live with her affliction.

He died from a mysterious affliction.

Recent Examples on the Web

Despite their reputation as a winter affliction, chapped lips seem to strike year-round. —Kiana Murden, Vogue, 25 Dec. 2024

Republicans, however, suffer from an inverse affliction, a form of congenital overconfidence that comes straight from the leader who has reinvented the G.O.P. in his braggadocious image. —Susan B. Glasser, The New Yorker, 10 Oct. 2024

Later medical literature sometimes painted lovesickness as an affliction that affected men in particular. —Jennifer Wilson, The New Yorker, 2 Dec. 2024

The brand’s initial products—balms and salves—are crafted specifically to address chronic muscle pain and inflammation, common afflictions for anyone who’s put their body through rigorous physical demands. —Javier Hasse, Forbes, 1 Nov. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English affliccioun "misery, distress, self-inflicted pain," borrowed from Anglo-French afflicion, borrowed from Late Latin afflīctiōn-, afflīctiō, from Latin afflīgere "to afflict" + -tiōn-, -tiō, suffix of action nouns

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 3

Kids Definition

affliction

noun

af·​flic·​tion ə-ˈflik-shən 

1

: the state of being afflicted

2

: something that causes pain or unhappiness