sicken

verb

sick·​en ˈsi-kən How to pronounce sicken (audio)
sickened; sickening ˈsi-kə-niŋ How to pronounce sicken (audio)
ˈsik-niŋ

intransitive verb

1
: to become sick
2
: to become weary or satiated

transitive verb

1
: to make sick
2
: to cause revulsion in
their prejudice sickens me
sickener
ˈsi-kə-nər How to pronounce sicken (audio)
ˈsik-nər
noun

Examples of sicken in a Sentence

Many people sickened and died on the long voyage. The bacteria in the drinking water sickened the whole village. We were sickened by the reports of violence.
Recent Examples on the Web The outbreak has sickened people in Colorado (26), Nebraska (9), Utah (4), Wyoming (4), Oregon (1), Montana (1), Kansas (1), Missouri (1), Iowa (1), Wisconsin (1), according to the CDC. Antonio Pequeño Iv, Forbes, 22 Oct. 2024 Michaels was the co-author of a report published earlier this year by the CDC which found kids sickened with the bacteria increased last year but remained lower than before COVID-19. Alexander Tin, CBS News, 18 Oct. 2024 Harr’s main character, Jan Schlichtmann, is an idealistic attorney representing eight families sickened with leukemia by chemicals that the two companies allegedly dumped into a river near their homes, poisoning their drinking water. Jared Sullivan, The Atlantic, 17 Oct. 2024 Passengers and crew aboard Royal Caribbean’s Radiance of the Seas ship were sickened with gastrointestinal illness after a salmonella outbreak. Erin Clements, People.com, 4 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for sicken 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'sicken.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of sicken was in the 13th century

Dictionary Entries Near sicken

Cite this Entry

“Sicken.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sicken. Accessed 2 Nov. 2024.

Kids Definition

sicken

verb
sick·​en ˈsik-ən How to pronounce sicken (audio)
sickened; sickening -(ə-)niŋ How to pronounce sicken (audio)
: to make or become sick

Medical Definition

sicken

transitive verb
sick·​en ˈsik-ən How to pronounce sicken (audio)
: to make sick

intransitive verb

: to become sick

More from Merriam-Webster on sicken

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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