1
2
as in harmful
causing or capable of causing harm
one of the ill effects of winter weather is the rapid spread of germs as people spend more time together indoors
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in poorly
temporarily suffering from a disorder of the body
since I'm ill, I guess that I'll just have to miss that dental appointment
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4
as in poor
falling short of a standard
such ill behavior will not be tolerated
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5
as in ominous
being or showing a sign of evil or calamity to come
the abrupt breakdown of negotiations appears to be an ill omen for this ongoing hostage situation
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1
as in severely
in a manner so as to cause loss or suffering
in those days society treated debtors very ill, even going so far as to put them in prison
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2
as in no
certainly not
you can ill afford to miss another day of work
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1
as in disease
an abnormal state that disrupts a plant's or animal's normal bodily functioning
chicken pox and the other ills that were once a fixture of childhood
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2
as in evil
that which is morally unacceptable
idealistic people who try to cure all of our society's ills
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3
as in misfortune
bad luck or an example of this
the travelers merrily set off on their journey, scarcely imagining the ills that would befall them
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Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of ill
Jameelah Nasheed, Essence, 21 May 2025
One received a 21-month jail term and the other was freed after his sentence was reduced because of ill health and time already served in custody.
Pro-democracy activist Jimmy Lai, Apple Daily’s founder, is still fighting national security charges that carry a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.
—Kanis Leung, Los Angeles Times, 21 May 2025
Peter Guo, NBC news, 2 May 2025
Legal experts said Schumer’s remarks, while ill advised, fell well short of criminal conduct.
—Jeremy Kohler, ProPublica, 24 Apr. 2025
Dominic Patten, Deadline, 5 May 2025
Protectionists presented tariffs as the essential policy to quicken the development of manufactures as well as a remedy to the social ills that afflicted the emerging industrial working class.
— Made By History, Time, 28 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for ill
Adjective
The personhood provision also limits medical decision-making, particularly in devastating cases involving severely ill or brain-dead pregnant women, like Smith.
—Jameelah Nasheed, Essence, 21 May 2025
One received a 21-month jail term and the other was freed after his sentence was reduced because of ill health and time already served in custody.
Pro-democracy activist Jimmy Lai, Apple Daily’s founder, is still fighting national security charges that carry a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.
—Kanis Leung, Los Angeles Times, 21 May 2025
Adverb
The students fell ill within minutes of eating rice and potato curry, vomiting and convulsing with stomach cramps.
—Peter Guo, NBC news, 2 May 2025
Legal experts said Schumer’s remarks, while ill advised, fell well short of criminal conduct.
—Jeremy Kohler, ProPublica, 24 Apr. 2025
Noun
On one level, this flurry of proposals to ills that have been festering in California and domestically for years is more posturing than problem solving.
—Dominic Patten, Deadline, 5 May 2025
Protectionists presented tariffs as the essential policy to quicken the development of manufactures as well as a remedy to the social ills that afflicted the emerging industrial working class.
— Made By History, Time, 28 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for ill
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ill
Adjective
-
Each year, about 48 million people in the U.S. get sick with foodborne illnesses, 128,000 are hospitalized, and 3,000 die, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.—
Stephanie Armour,
Miami Herald,
29 May 2025
-
Pregnant women are at high risk of serious complications from the virus and their newborns are in danger of getting really sick from COVID.—
Brittney Melton,
NPR,
28 May 2025
Adjective
-
The jury is still out on whether emulsifiers are harmful to the gut.—
Fran Kritz,
Verywell Health,
30 May 2025
-
China has gone even further, requiring digital watermarks on synthetic media and directing platforms to swiftly remove harmful content — part of its broader strategy of centralized content control.—
Anisha Sircar,
Forbes.com,
30 May 2025
Adjective
-
The researchers and their partners are also working to track local residents’ health and to measure how well or poorly interventions like masks and household air filters protected them.—
Maggie Astor,
New York Times,
28 Mar. 2025
-
Both the United States and the United Nations have stepped back from leadership roles, a reflection of how poorly interventions in Haiti have gone and also the wide range of issues in other parts of the world at the moment.—
Adam Taylor,
Washington Post,
7 Mar. 2024
Adjective
-
This tactic is sometimes used to justify letting an employee go under the guise of poor performance.—
Sho Dewan,
Forbes.com,
24 May 2025
-
The product was released in 2023 to a poor reception, and discontinued before the company began winding down operations in February.—
Tom Huddleston Jr.,
CNBC,
24 May 2025
Adjective
-
There’s a shift in the second to last episode when Michaela suddenly becomes not ridiculous or ominous, but self-aware and human and someone who very clearly sees what a fraud her life has been.—
Nina Metz,
Chicago Tribune,
22 May 2025
-
In a small 18th-century English village, locals hear ominous barking.—
Shannon Carlin,
Time,
22 May 2025
Adverb
-
But a night like Saturday is also about the feelings that football engenders in people, no matter the origins of a team’s success.—
Charlie Eccleshare,
New York Times,
1 June 2025
-
This piece of wearable tech creates cooling and warming sensations to keep you at your perfect temperature no matter the weather.—
Maggie Gillette,
Better Homes & Gardens,
1 June 2025
Noun
-
The fungal disease does not spread from person to person, according to the CDC.—
Julia Gomez,
USA Today,
23 May 2025
-
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
Noun
-
Together, the two men battle the forces of evil, each other, and their own demons on the path to salvation.—
Rosy Cordero,
Deadline,
27 May 2025
-
In Behind the Badge, Jones chronicles the stories of firefighters, police officers, border patrol agents, game wardens, sheriffs and dispatchers who all deliver lifelines to those in need and protect us from the calamity and evil of modern society.—
Chris Dorsey,
Forbes.com,
27 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Ill.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ill. Accessed 6 Jun. 2025.
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