1
as in frail
chronically or repeatedly suffering from poor health
a sickly foal that seemed to catch everything that the other horses had
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in poisonous
bad for the well-being of the body
lungs scarred by years of exposure to the sickly air of the coal mines
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of sickly
The first one is the tiny avian corpse of Joey, the sickly baby crow Sunny adopted against Suzie’s wishes and tried to nurse back to health in episode five.
—
Chris Klimek, Vulture, 28 Aug. 2024
Chapman had a sickly husband and took in foster girls to help pay the bills.
—Jessica Garrison, Los Angeles Times, 18 Dec. 2024
The massive four-story brownstone is the sickly shade of green mold, except in the places the façade has chipped off completely.
—Bridget Read, Curbed, 15 Nov. 2024
Sugar and other ingredients in Halloween treats can cast a sickly spell on the trillions of microorganisms that reside in your gut, collectively known as the gut microbiome.
—Christopher Damman, Discover Magazine, 23 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for sickly 
Chris Klimek, Vulture, 28 Aug. 2024
Chapman had a sickly husband and took in foster girls to help pay the bills.
—Jessica Garrison, Los Angeles Times, 18 Dec. 2024
The massive four-story brownstone is the sickly shade of green mold, except in the places the façade has chipped off completely.
—Bridget Read, Curbed, 15 Nov. 2024
Sugar and other ingredients in Halloween treats can cast a sickly spell on the trillions of microorganisms that reside in your gut, collectively known as the gut microbiome.
—Christopher Damman, Discover Magazine, 23 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for sickly
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sickly
Adjective
-
Only the uninitiated and those with a frail grasp of the big picture would add more lawyers to any governmental stew.—
Charles Selle,
Chicago Tribune,
5 Feb. 2025
-
Wilson’s voice, in particular, verged on frail—so far from the immaculate silk of the recording as to seem like a reinvention.—
Michael Owen,
The Atlantic,
5 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
The smoke and ash from structures and cars can contain more than a hundred toxic chemicals and poisonous gases, according to state officials.—
Tony Briscoe,
Los Angeles Times,
30 Jan. 2025
-
The bacteria survived, protected and fed by the fungus—and the fungus scored a poisonous partner.—
Molly Herring,
WIRED,
26 Jan. 2025
Adjective
-
Set and shot in Palestine, this film arrives at a pivotal moment, as the world holds its breath with a fragile ceasefire in Gaza, but a ramp up of violence in the West Bank.—
Nick Vivarelli,
Variety,
3 Feb. 2025
-
The statement from the Arab foreign ministers touched on a range of topics relating to Gaza’s reconstruction, as the fragile ceasefire between Hamas and Israel allows the region to assess the impact of a brutal 15-month conflict.—
Rob Picheta,
CNN,
1 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
The intense firestorms that ripped through thousands of homes burned a number of household items that become toxic when exposed to heat, including car batteries, ammunition, propane tanks, pesticides and cleaning products.—
Ryan Fonseca,
Los Angeles Times,
29 Jan. 2025
-
Unfortunately for this fish, crinoids don't have much nutrition and have a coating of mucus that can be toxic to fish.—
James Doubek,
NPR,
29 Jan. 2025
Adjective
-
Most cases were blamed on direct contact with sick animals, except for three that have befuddled investigators who failed to identify a likely source.—
Alexander Tin,
CBS News,
28 Jan. 2025
-
Health officials emphasize that any sick birds or cattle are kept out of the food supply.—
Dee-Ann Durbin,
Chicago Tribune,
27 Jan. 2025
Adjective
-
The unhealthful effects of autocracy remain robust even when accounting for economic differences and when excluding Venezuela and its collapsing health-care system.—
Thomas J. Bollyky,
Foreign Affairs,
30 Jan. 2020
-
However, communities in the San Gabriel and San Bernardino mountains were still experiencing unhealthful air quality, according to the air district.—
Tony Briscoe,
Los Angeles Times,
14 Sep. 2024
Adjective
-
Its economy and productivity are weak, debt is high and trade diversification is low, the analysts added, singling out the country’s already-declining softwood lumber industry as particularly at risk.—
Jenni Reid,
CNBC,
3 Feb. 2025
-
When those cells outnumber the osteoblasts, though, there's an overall loss of bone tissue, resulting in weaker, more fragile bones.—
Ben Coxworth,
New Atlas,
2 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
The researchers suggested improvements to infrastructure to reduce traffic congestion, expand public transport and increase opportunities to work from home would all help combat unhealthy eating.—
Anders Fogh Rasmussen,
Newsweek,
4 Feb. 2025
-
The 21 participating food companies pledged to cut back on marketing unhealthy foods to children under 12 — later revised to under 13.—
Maria Godoy,
NPR,
4 Feb. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near sickly
Cite this Entry
“Sickly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sickly. Accessed 13 Feb. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share