as in plague
a widespread disease resulting in a high rate of death
the fear that terrorists could unleash a pestilence that would wreak unspeakable havoc
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Recent Examples of pestilence
Email marketing has become an inescapable pestilence, causing anxiety as consumers try to discern which emails are legitimate and which may be phishing attempts.
—
Greg Petro, Forbes, 1 Nov. 2024
My advice has nothing to do with conflict or pestilence.
—Paul Thornton, The Mercury News, 2 Aug. 2024
Published in the aftermath of the Black Death, Boccaccio’s frame narrative features 10 wealthy young people (and some of their servants) sheltering in the countryside from the pestilence ravaging Florence.
—Lili Loofbourow, Washington Post, 25 July 2024
Readers also turned to tales of pestilence past: Daniel Defoe’s A Journal of the Plague Year, Gabriel García Márquez’s Love in the Time of Cholera.
—Judy Berman, TIME, 25 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for pestilence 
Greg Petro, Forbes, 1 Nov. 2024
My advice has nothing to do with conflict or pestilence.
—Paul Thornton, The Mercury News, 2 Aug. 2024
Published in the aftermath of the Black Death, Boccaccio’s frame narrative features 10 wealthy young people (and some of their servants) sheltering in the countryside from the pestilence ravaging Florence.
—Lili Loofbourow, Washington Post, 25 July 2024
Readers also turned to tales of pestilence past: Daniel Defoe’s A Journal of the Plague Year, Gabriel García Márquez’s Love in the Time of Cholera.
—Judy Berman, TIME, 25 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for pestilence
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Cite this Entry
“Pestilence.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pestilence. Accessed 22 Dec. 2024.
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