sicken

verb

ˈsi-kən How to pronounce sicken (audio)
Definition of sickennext
as in to disgust
to cause to feel disgust sickened by the awful sight of the polluted river

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

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 sicken This can include cases in which toxic chemicals drift into neighboring fields or communities and sicken people. — Robert J. Lopez, Los Angeles Times, 24 Sep. 2026 Two types of influenza — A and B — are responsible for the seasonal flu epidemics that sicken people, according to the California Department of Public Health. — Angela Rodriguez, Sacbee.com, 22 Sep. 2026 At the time, the FDA had gotten reports of at least 30 sickened people. — Beth Mole, ArsTechnica, 17 Sep. 2026 The news comes on the heels of an outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease on New York City’s Upper East Side, around Museum Mile, which killed 11 people and sickened 94 this past summer. — Cara Lynn Shultz, PEOPLE, 15 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for sicken
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sicken
  1. disgust
  2. repulse
  3. appall
  4. nauseate
  5. horrify
Verb
  • Kaufhold thinks that something might be a heightened sensitivity to disgust.
    — Jonathan Lambert, NPR, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Janice was disgusted; Mary was emotionally devastated and financially ruined.
    — Ben Taub, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2026
Definition of disgust
Verb
  • Her widowed aunt plays chaperone as Susanna attends heady lectures and repulses her many suitors.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 5 Oct. 2026
  • Young people just aren’t interested, partly because they’re repulsed by bodily fluids.
    — Marta Balaga, Variety, 16 Sep. 2026
Definition of repulse
Verb
  • As a graduate student and young mother in Israel, she had been appalled that her kids were being taught creationism in public school.
    — Daniel Brook, New Yorker, 24 Oct. 2026
  • The neighbors, who had till then lived in a conventional suburban setting — two-story colonials, wide lawns — were appalled.
    — Adriane Quinlan, Curbed, 21 Oct. 2026
Definition of appall
Verb
  • Many also feel nauseated, throw up or break out in a blotchy rash a few days in.
    — Andrés Henao, CNN Money, 21 Sep. 2026
  • Some of their stomachs endure the nauseating exercise without producing vomit.
    — Anya Armentrout, Twin Cities, 31 Aug. 2026
Definition of nauseate
Verb
  • Alma Hernandez, board president of Santa Maria Joint Union High School District, said she was horrified by ICE’s actions.
    — Andrea Castillo, Los Angeles Times, 23 Oct. 2026
  • The incident Monday afternoon sparked horrified reactions on social media as eyewitnesses shared their experiences online.
    — Taylor Croft, AJC.com, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of horrify

Phrases Containing sicken

Browse Nearby Words

sick bays
sicken
sickened
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Sicken.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sicken. Accessed 28 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of grotesque

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'

'Za' and 9 Other Words to Help You Win at SCRABBLE
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
different halloween monsters in silhouette
A Monstrous Vocab Quiz Words That Go Bump in the Night
See All