as in plagued
to cause persistent suffering to
the South was afflicted by a severe drought he's been afflicted by nightmares ever since the accident
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in troubled
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Recent Examples of afflicted
David Reamer, Anchorage Daily News, 12 June 2022
For nearly five years, the lingering hope of the pundit class (and, notably, the Biden campaign) was that the Trump fever would eventually burn itself out and those so afflicted would awake from its throes eager to be normal again.
—Alex Shephard, The New Republic, 6 Jan. 2022
Regarding Cuba now, there seems to be an additional Russian objective: weakening U.S. and Canadian intelligence on the island by forcing the evacuation of afflicted spies and diplomatic personnel.
—Néstor T. Carbonell, National Review, 12 Apr. 2021
Some of the bikers pouring into the area are coming from distant states far more afflicted.
—CBS News, 10 Aug. 2020
Kroger officials said McMullen had planned to remove his mask for the event, which was not attended by Pence's afflicted press secretary Katie Miller who stayed in Washington.
—Alexander Coolidge, Cincinnati.com, 11 May 2020
Symptoms of the illness are similar to pneumonia, although videos have been posted that purportedly show afflicted people collapsing on the street, bleeding from their mouths, and being treated by doctors wearing hazmat suits.
—Zachary Halaschak, Washington Examiner, 25 Jan. 2020
Mealy bugs can be a real problem, not just for the afflicted plant but for neighboring, healthy houseplants.
—Adrian Higgins, Washington Post, 13 Aug. 2019
Making a compelling financial case to fight climate change and to help the most afflicted demands a rigorous accounting of its effects.
—Umair Irfan, Vox, 9 Oct. 2018
Héctor M. Varela Rios, The Conversation, 8 Sep. 2025
Griffin, who does clinical work in Long Island, New York, said his sister-in-law is in her 40s and quite wary of long COVID, the enduring, debilitating health issues that have afflicted millions of Americans who contracted the coronavirus.
—Jorge L. Ortiz, USA Today, 5 Sep. 2025
But Thomas was afflicted by health troubles on the 26-56 Nets last year.
—Alex Kirschenbaum, MSNBC Newsweek, 3 Sep. 2025
The World Health Organization states that in 2021 alone, nearly 57 million people were afflicted with some form of dementia.
—Forbes.com, 31 Aug. 2025
The most vulnerable — starving children, people afflicted with leprosy, and pregnant women without the remotest possibility of healthcare — always needed tending to; that colonial reality was intact.
—Ritesh Mehta, IndieWire, 27 Aug. 2025
Fortunately for the Red Sox, their eternal rivals were afflicted with a similar malady.
—Gabrielle Starr, Boston Herald, 22 Aug. 2025
One in four would be afflicted with the disease.
—Rustin Dodd, New York Times, 19 Aug. 2025
June was unusually warm, and a major heatwave afflicted nearly a third of the population late in the month, and July offered little relief.
—Chris Mooney, CNN Money, 19 Aug. 2025
Verb
The afflicted man instead went to a Dawson hospital, where he was fed only raw potatoes and charged $10 a day for the privilege.
—David Reamer, Anchorage Daily News, 12 June 2022
For nearly five years, the lingering hope of the pundit class (and, notably, the Biden campaign) was that the Trump fever would eventually burn itself out and those so afflicted would awake from its throes eager to be normal again.
—Alex Shephard, The New Republic, 6 Jan. 2022
Regarding Cuba now, there seems to be an additional Russian objective: weakening U.S. and Canadian intelligence on the island by forcing the evacuation of afflicted spies and diplomatic personnel.
—Néstor T. Carbonell, National Review, 12 Apr. 2021
Some of the bikers pouring into the area are coming from distant states far more afflicted.
—CBS News, 10 Aug. 2020
Kroger officials said McMullen had planned to remove his mask for the event, which was not attended by Pence's afflicted press secretary Katie Miller who stayed in Washington.
—Alexander Coolidge, Cincinnati.com, 11 May 2020
Symptoms of the illness are similar to pneumonia, although videos have been posted that purportedly show afflicted people collapsing on the street, bleeding from their mouths, and being treated by doctors wearing hazmat suits.
—Zachary Halaschak, Washington Examiner, 25 Jan. 2020
Mealy bugs can be a real problem, not just for the afflicted plant but for neighboring, healthy houseplants.
—Adrian Higgins, Washington Post, 13 Aug. 2019
Making a compelling financial case to fight climate change and to help the most afflicted demands a rigorous accounting of its effects.
—Umair Irfan, Vox, 9 Oct. 2018
Adjective
Just look at poverty, violence and health and housing inequities that have long afflicted Fairhill and West Kensington, two adjacent and heavily Puerto Rican neighborhoods in North Philadelphia.
—Héctor M. Varela Rios, The Conversation, 8 Sep. 2025
Griffin, who does clinical work in Long Island, New York, said his sister-in-law is in her 40s and quite wary of long COVID, the enduring, debilitating health issues that have afflicted millions of Americans who contracted the coronavirus.
—Jorge L. Ortiz, USA Today, 5 Sep. 2025
But Thomas was afflicted by health troubles on the 26-56 Nets last year.
—Alex Kirschenbaum, MSNBC Newsweek, 3 Sep. 2025
The World Health Organization states that in 2021 alone, nearly 57 million people were afflicted with some form of dementia.
—Forbes.com, 31 Aug. 2025
The most vulnerable — starving children, people afflicted with leprosy, and pregnant women without the remotest possibility of healthcare — always needed tending to; that colonial reality was intact.
—Ritesh Mehta, IndieWire, 27 Aug. 2025
Fortunately for the Red Sox, their eternal rivals were afflicted with a similar malady.
—Gabrielle Starr, Boston Herald, 22 Aug. 2025
One in four would be afflicted with the disease.
—Rustin Dodd, New York Times, 19 Aug. 2025
June was unusually warm, and a major heatwave afflicted nearly a third of the population late in the month, and July offered little relief.
—Chris Mooney, CNN Money, 19 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for afflicted
Verb
-
When governance meets Goliath For more than a decade, Biglari Holdings and Biglari himself have been plagued by accusations of mismanagement due to ballooning executive pay, stock volatility, and a licensing deal that potentially advantages Biglari personally.—
Lily Mae Lazarus,
Fortune,
18 Sep. 2025
-
While economic uncertainty has plagued boardrooms this year, some businesses are not putting plans on hold.—
Rachel Barber,
USA Today,
17 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
But occasionally, an individual surfaces who is able to navigate these troubled waters and seemingly coasts through the bad weather.—
Nina-Sophia Miralles,
Forbes.com,
18 Sep. 2025
-
Deeply troubled parents spoke to senators Tuesday, sounding alarms about chatbot harms after kids became addicted to companion bots that encouraged self-harm, suicide, and violence.—
Ashley Belanger,
ArsTechnica,
17 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
In Nazi Germany, transgender people were persecuted, barred from public life.—
Jackson Thompson,
FOXNews.com,
17 Sep. 2025
-
More and more, people who have loyally served Putin’s system are being persecuted, mainly on the grounds of corruption.—
ANDREI KOLESNIKOV,
Foreign Affairs,
8 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
The number paid respects to Matthew Shepard, a gay man who was tortured and killed because of his sexuality in 1998.—
Natasha Dye,
PEOPLE,
11 Sep. 2025
-
Soliman fled to the United States in 2014 on a visitor visa and later filed a petition for asylum, describing how security forces over the years had locked him up on false charges and tortured him with electrical shocks.—
Hannah Allam,
ProPublica,
10 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
At one job, Lee’s wrist was crushed in a pressing machine, an injury that left him officially designated as disabled.—
Charlie Campbell,
Time,
17 Sep. 2025
-
That includes rules on supplier diversity and a state law requiring annual reports on hiring of women, minorities, disabled veterans, and LGBTQ+ individuals.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
16 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Through the first-person narration of his protagonist, Nicholas, a teenager suddenly besieged by anxiety, Clune conveys with uncanny vividness what a panic attack feels like.—
Scott Stossel,
The Atlantic,
9 Sep. 2025
-
Landslide in western Sudan kills at least 1,000 A landslide in western Sudan killed at least 1,000 people, intensifying hardship in a country besieged by years of civil war.—
Tasneem Nashrulla,
semafor.com,
4 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Ali stumbled, throwing a feeble, off-balance uppercut to the space where Frazier had just stood.—
Vann R. Newkirk II,
The Atlantic,
16 Sep. 2025
-
Absent a terrible decision by Matt Williams to send that runner in the 9th when Pages was barely beyond second base, Pages once again did more harm than good—and that’s more than can be said of Teo, whose ABs grow more feeble by the night.—
Fabian Ardaya,
New York Times,
13 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
In September, late night TV turns 71, ancient by television standards and, until recently, not infirm — one of American pop culture’s most durable inventions and exports.—
Steven Zeitchik,
HollywoodReporter,
7 Aug. 2025
-
Many of those deaths are of infirm inmates who were transferred to the state’s prison hospital in Raleigh for care and died there, records show.—
Charlotte Observer,
Charlotte Observer,
4 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Afflicted.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/afflicted. Accessed 20 Sep. 2025.
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