1
as in frail
chronically or repeatedly suffering from poor health
a sickly foal that seemed to catch everything that the other horses had
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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
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Recent Examples of sickly
Seeing their sickly child’s newfound obsession awaken within him a vigor and excitement for learning, Roosevelt’s parents encouraged his passion for natural history.
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Peter Zablocki, Smithsonian Magazine, 16 Oct. 2024
Anyway, the pale and sickly Antonio (Grande) is the son of Rudolph and Samberg, blessed with a heavenly singing voice.
—Andy Hoglund, EW.com, 13 Oct. 2024
The Collegeville outfit came with the mask of a scowling pirate with an open eye-patch that looked more like a black eye and a sickly green pallor that would shiver the timbers of the saltiest sea dog.
—René Guzman, San Antonio Express-News, 2 Oct. 2024
Orcs are conspicuous outliers in this regard, with actors’ skin hidden under thick layers of sickly makeup.
—Caitlin Penzeymoog, Vox, 7 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for sickly 
Peter Zablocki, Smithsonian Magazine, 16 Oct. 2024
Anyway, the pale and sickly Antonio (Grande) is the son of Rudolph and Samberg, blessed with a heavenly singing voice.
—Andy Hoglund, EW.com, 13 Oct. 2024
The Collegeville outfit came with the mask of a scowling pirate with an open eye-patch that looked more like a black eye and a sickly green pallor that would shiver the timbers of the saltiest sea dog.
—René Guzman, San Antonio Express-News, 2 Oct. 2024
Orcs are conspicuous outliers in this regard, with actors’ skin hidden under thick layers of sickly makeup.
—Caitlin Penzeymoog, Vox, 7 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for sickly
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sickly
Adjective
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There is nothing frail or frightened about his Scrooge.Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 11 Dec. 2024
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The federal agency warned that salmonella poses a serious-to-fatal infection risk for children, frail or elderly people and others with weakened immune systems.Jose R. Gonzalez, The Arizona Republic, 10 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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But the film’s poisonous reviews and disastrous box office all but torpedoed her Oscar hopes this year, and the film was shut out in Monday’s Globe nominations.Patrick Ryan, USA TODAY, 9 Dec. 2024
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But left unchecked, fear of failure becomes poisonous.Mark Kane, Forbes, 9 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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Quantum systems are prone to errors because qubits are fragile and can be disturbed by even the smallest environmental changes.Gordon G. Chang, Newsweek, 11 Dec. 2024
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Old and new, plastic or fragile, ornaments should always be stored in a container designed specifically for them.Kaitlin Gates, Better Homes & Gardens, 11 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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Russia has consistently denied using chemical weapons in Ukraine and, in turn, has accused Kyiv of employing toxic agents on the battlefield.Michael D. Carroll, Newsweek, 18 Dec. 2024
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Most of the concern comes from lab studies involving animals or human cell lines — scientists observed toxic effects of microplastics on the cellular and molecular levels.Will Stone, NPR, 18 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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The agency said Wednesday that the person was exposed to sick and dead birds in backyard flocks; this is the first US bird flu case linked to a backyard flock.Jamie Gumbrecht, CNN, 18 Dec. 2024
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By Weiland’s estimates, up to 300,000 people in the U.S. are currently getting sick with COVID-19 each day, compared to around 1 million cases per day around this time in recent years.Jamie Ducharme, TIME, 18 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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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
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According to the agency’s map, very unhealthy air levels were detected in the Chino Valley and San Bernardino areas, unhealthful levels in the eastern San Gabriel Valley as well as Pomona, Perris, Corona, Riverside areas and far northern Orange County.Hannah Fry, Los Angeles Times, 9 Sep. 2024
Adjective
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Capasa noted that a negative third quarter impacted by weak internal demand, the slowdown of purchases from Chinese customers and overall geopolitical instability kept worsening the cautious scenario already registered in the first half of the year.Sandra Salibian, WWD, 11 Dec. 2024
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Scene-to-scene continuity is typically weak and telling.Lance Eliot, Forbes, 11 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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More than half of American adults struggle with chronic health conditions — like type 2 diabetes, obesity and cardiovascular disease — for which unhealthy diets are a risk factor, according to the introduction to the new Scientific Report from the 2025 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee (DGAC).Ivana Saric, Axios, 11 Dec. 2024
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And that again is an unhealthy and unsustainable way to view myself.Cara Lynn Shultz, People.com, 10 Dec. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near sickly
Cite this Entry
“Sickly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sickly. Accessed 22 Dec. 2024.
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