1
as in disease
an abnormal state that disrupts a plant's or animal's normal bodily functioning
suffered from a mysterious illness that left her weak and tired all the time
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in sickness
the condition of not being in good health
prone to illness as a child, he was sent to a western ranch with the expectation that it would toughen him up
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Examples Sentences
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Recent Examples of illness
Rising temperatures spread deadly diseases like malaria, dengue and Zika while floods contaminate water supplies, increasing waterborne illnesses—a leading cause of death for children under five.
—
Your Impact With Unicef Contributor, Forbes, 21 Jan. 2025
Respiratory illnesses like the flu, common cold, and COVID-19 tend to spread more in the winter.
—Justin Gest, Newsweek, 20 Jan. 2025
Axios' Stef Kight reported that the Trump White House will prioritize reinstating Title 42, a COVID-era public health policy that uses concerns about spreading illness to facilitate the swift expulsion of migrants at the border and prevents them from attaining asylum.
—Avery Lotz, Axios, 20 Jan. 2025
Exposure to diesel exhaust can lead to asthma and respiratory illnesses and worsen existing heart and lung disease, especially in children and the elderly, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
—Nara Schoenberg, Chicago Tribune, 18 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for illness 
Your Impact With Unicef Contributor, Forbes, 21 Jan. 2025
Respiratory illnesses like the flu, common cold, and COVID-19 tend to spread more in the winter.
—Justin Gest, Newsweek, 20 Jan. 2025
Axios' Stef Kight reported that the Trump White House will prioritize reinstating Title 42, a COVID-era public health policy that uses concerns about spreading illness to facilitate the swift expulsion of migrants at the border and prevents them from attaining asylum.
—Avery Lotz, Axios, 20 Jan. 2025
Exposure to diesel exhaust can lead to asthma and respiratory illnesses and worsen existing heart and lung disease, especially in children and the elderly, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
—Nara Schoenberg, Chicago Tribune, 18 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for illness
Recent Examples of Synonyms for illness
Noun
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About 5,600 out of 56,000 workers are believed to have died from injury or disease during the U.S. phase of construction, according to the Panama Canal Authority, most of whom were from the Caribbean.—
Mithil Aggarwal,
NBC News,
23 Jan. 2025
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Talavera, Suchan and colleagues hope that using pollen signatures to map changing migration patterns could help to predict where fungal disease outbreaks might occur. Cuvelier, meanwhile, hopes to continue counting butterflies with his granddaughter.—
Saugat Bolakhe,
JSTOR Daily,
23 Jan. 2025
Noun
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The program will grant them access to insurance for sickness and maternity, work risks, disability and life, retirement, and for severance in advanced age and old age.—
Fernanda González,
WIRED,
22 Jan. 2025
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Outside, in the buttery December sunlight, Rowan and Amelia vowed to cherish each other always, in sickness and in health, in poverty and wealth.—
Becca Andrews,
Them,
13 Jan. 2025
Noun
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Summary Celery has been used throughout history as a folk medicine to relieve many ailments.—
Hannah Coakley, MSPH, RDN,
Verywell Health,
15 Jan. 2025
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Most common ailments aren’t connected to a single gene; polygenic risk scores aim to predict the lifetime likelihood of conditions, such as diabetes, in which many genes contribute to a person’s risk.—
Kristen V. Brown,
The Atlantic,
15 Jan. 2025
Noun
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At the center of these ills stands the island’s relationship with the mainland.—
Graciela Mochkofsky,
The New Yorker,
8 Jan. 2025
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The strict binary of this is man, this is woman has been responsible for a lot of ills.—
Lanna Apisukh,
New York Times,
31 Dec. 2024
Noun
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Medical records showed that in the days after the injury, Ben was lethargic and had a persistent fever.—
Erin Moriarty,
CBS News,
18 Jan. 2025
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According to Healthline, passengers experiencing severe symptoms such as fever, excessive coughing, or difficulty breathing should reconsider flying.—
David Faris,
Newsweek,
18 Jan. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near illness
Cite this Entry
“Illness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/illness. Accessed 28 Jan. 2025.
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