as in disease
an abnormal state that disrupts a plant's or animal's normal bodily functioning
contracted some tropical distemper while he was doing research in the jungles of Borneo
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in to alarm
to trouble the mind of; to make uneasy
despite his career success, he has been distempered by nagging feelings of inadequacy his whole life
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of distemper
Sara Schilling, Sacramento Bee, 21 Jan. 2025
Ultimately, distemper went from being a widespread killer to a preventable disease.
—Danny Robb, JSTOR Daily, 15 Jan. 2025
Democratic dysfunction goes hand in hand with democratic distemper.
—John Micklethwait, Foreign Affairs, 29 May 2014
In addition to Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, the stray dogs have been implicated in cases of dog bites and rabies in people, and parvo and distemper in pets.
—Pien Huang, NPR, 15 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for distemper
Noun
In one case, a border collie was euthanized within a week of being adopted after it was diagnosed with aspiration pneumonia and distemper, prosecutors said.
—Sara Schilling, Sacramento Bee, 21 Jan. 2025
Ultimately, distemper went from being a widespread killer to a preventable disease.
—Danny Robb, JSTOR Daily, 15 Jan. 2025
Democratic dysfunction goes hand in hand with democratic distemper.
—John Micklethwait, Foreign Affairs, 29 May 2014
In addition to Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, the stray dogs have been implicated in cases of dog bites and rabies in people, and parvo and distemper in pets.
—Pien Huang, NPR, 15 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for distemper
Recent Examples of Synonyms for distemper
Noun
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The Mayo Clinic says the disease is most often diagnosed when people are in their mid-60s.—
Christie D’Zurilla,
Los Angeles Times,
23 May 2025
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This field includes liquid biopsy, referring to techniques that process bodily fluids such as blood, urine, and saliva for different disease biomarkers.—
Cat Wang,
Forbes.com,
23 May 2025
Verb
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Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas, in an email, said that he was alarmed by the decision to cut the funding, adding that many Missourians in need of behavioral health care come to Kansas City.—
Kacen Bayless,
Kansas City Star,
23 May 2025
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The warning follows a concerning rise in measles cases nationally, with a significant outbreak in Texas that has alarmed public health officials.—
Jordan King,
MSNBC Newsweek,
21 May 2025
Noun
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Wear masks: All of these respiratory illnesses can be spread through airborne viruses or bacteria particles.—
Evan Moore,
Charlotte Observer,
3 June 2025
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Absence of treatment is not absence of illness, of course, but given how much time Gauguin spent in hospitals, that such a familiar disease would have been missed seems unlikely.—
Susan Tallman,
The Atlantic,
30 May 2025
Verb
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His job, which took him back to his native New Orleans, was working out problems at municipal entities distressed by Hurricane Katrina.—
William Baldwin,
Forbes.com,
17 May 2025
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Now onto the bad, which is particularly distressing: Baltimore.—
Chris Branch,
New York Times,
2 May 2025
Noun
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The Incas had advanced calendars and ceramics as well, and perfected a type of neurosurgery, likely to treat skull wounds suffered in battle, among other ailments.—
Sam Kean,
The Atlantic,
26 May 2025
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The death was attributed to a liver ailment, which veterans said had nothing to do with Siwash’s fondness for beer.—
Kori Rumore,
Chicago Tribune,
23 May 2025
Verb
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Solar flares can disturb Earth's ionosphere, for instance, briefly disrupting high-frequency radio signals and leading to brief radio blackouts on the daylit side of the planet during the flare event.—
Daisy Dobrijevic,
Space.com,
22 May 2025
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However, some 3,000 years ago—around the transition from the Bronze Age to the Iron Age—newcomers to the area disturbed the burial site by removing parts of the mound and displacing stones.—
Eli Wizevich,
Smithsonian Magazine,
22 May 2025
Noun
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The outset was more about identifying the mental health of the practitioner than identifying the ills in society ...—
Yvonne Villarreal,
Los Angeles Times,
24 May 2025
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Carmichael is content to share his personal shame while exposing the social ills that have also tried to stop him from being his true self.—
Aramide Tinubu,
Variety,
23 May 2025
Verb
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After years of ‘losing culture,’ can the new-look Chicago Bears turn things around on defense? Chicago Bears safety Kevin Byard didn’t bother mincing words.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
27 May 2025
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The walk, only his second this month, bothered him.—
Matt Gelb,
New York Times,
26 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Distemper.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/distemper. Accessed 6 Jun. 2025.
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