ailing

adjective

ail·​ing ˈā-liŋ How to pronounce ailing (audio)
: having or suffering from an illness or injury
providing care for his ailing mother
trying to rest her ailing knee/back
a person in ailing health
often used figuratively
an ailing company
an ailing economy

Examples of ailing in a Sentence

when his ailing wife had to go to a nursing home, he visited her every day he was ailing from some sort of infection in his eye that made it look all red and puffy
Recent Examples on the Web
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.
While with the Rams, Staley helped transform an ailing defense the year prior — 17th in points allowed and 13th total yards allowed per game — into a force worth being recognized and respected, finishing first in both PPG and total yards allowed. Dianna Russini, The Athletic, 21 Feb. 2025 Running the ad would have risked placing the paper — whose ailing finances were exacerbated in October when 250,000 Post readers canceled their subscriptions following Bezos’ decision to block the paper’s endorsement for Kamala Harris — directly in the administration’s crosshairs. Liam Reilly, CNN, 17 Feb. 2025 Financially ailing Groupon, which had occupied 300,000 square feet there, decamped about a year ago for a 25,000-square-foot space in the Loop. The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 31 Jan. 2025 The actress’ requisite ferocious grace this time is lent to Sabine, an ailing French artist who refuses to waste her final days bedridden. Carlos Aguilar, Variety, 31 Jan. 2025 See All Example Sentences for ailing

Word History

Etymology

from present participle of ail entry 1

First Known Use

1598, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of ailing was in 1598

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Ailing.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ailing. Accessed 9 Mar. 2025.

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