ailing

adjective

ail·​ing ˈā-liŋ 

: having or suffering from an illness or injury

providing care for his ailing mother

trying to rest her ailing knee/back

a person in ailing health

—often used figuratively

an ailing company

an ailing economy

Synonyms of ailing

• fragile
• dying
• frail
• sickly
• sick
• weak
• invalid
• weakly

Examples of ailing in a Sentence

when his ailing wife had to go to a nursing home, he visited her every day

he was ailing from some sort of infection in his eye that made it look all red and puffy

Recent Examples on the Web

The next year, their uncle was arrested in the Vel d’Hiv roundup, and months later French police took their ailing paternal grandmother, Sheindléa Badinter. —Lauren Collins, New Yorker, 1 Apr. 2026

Born in Mountain Home, Hartz returned to Idaho in retirement to help her ailing mother. —Mark Dee, Idaho Statesman, 28 Mar. 2026

Maybe the client had to leave their job to take care of an ailing family member. —Dallas Morning News, 27 Mar. 2026

The Danforths, on whose property the new game takes place, are headed up by twins Ursula (Sarah Michelle Gellar) and Titus (Shawn Hatosy), children of ailing patriarch Chester (David Cronenberg). —Alison Willmore, Vulture, 20 Mar. 2026

Word History

Etymology

from present participle of ail entry 1

First Known Use

1598, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for ailing

• bailing
• baling
• failing
• flailing
• grayling
• hailing
• jailing
• mailing
• nailing
• paling
• railing
• sailing