as in ordeal
a negative event or circumstance that is common to a particular setting or situation and is usually beyond one's control
The vicissitudes of medical school proved too much for the anxious student.
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Recent Examples of vicissitude
People who pay attention to the vicissitudes of Tesla CEO Elon Musk know that the man is not always serious on Twitter.
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Aarian Marshall, Wired, 10 May 2020
The vicissitudes of history always challenge us in new and often confounding ways; that’s in the nature of things.
—Jon Meacham, New York Times, 24 Mar. 2020
All of the biggest corporate mergers, the deals that determine the vicissitudes of our global markets, happen within their walls.
—Rachel Epstein, Marie Claire, 30 Mar. 2020
Sport is usually a constant -- a field, court, track or course that is resistant to the vicissitudes of the world around us.
—George Ramsay, CNN, 12 Mar. 2020
See all Example Sentences for vicissitude 
Aarian Marshall, Wired, 10 May 2020
The vicissitudes of history always challenge us in new and often confounding ways; that’s in the nature of things.
—Jon Meacham, New York Times, 24 Mar. 2020
All of the biggest corporate mergers, the deals that determine the vicissitudes of our global markets, happen within their walls.
—Rachel Epstein, Marie Claire, 30 Mar. 2020
Sport is usually a constant -- a field, court, track or course that is resistant to the vicissitudes of the world around us.
—George Ramsay, CNN, 12 Mar. 2020
See all Example Sentences for vicissitude
Recent Examples of Synonyms for vicissitude
Noun
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Amazingly, Mom stayed conscious and talking the entire time of this ordeal.Philip Potempa, Chicago Tribune, 17 Jan. 2025
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Earlier this month, Main Street Sports officially emerged from bankruptcy, ending a nearly two-year ordeal.Alex Sherman, CNBC, 16 Jan. 2025
Noun
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But those lines, and those gauntlets, differ depending who is asked.Will Carless, USA TODAY, 5 Jan. 2025
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The Chiefs, though, are in a bit of a difficult position, considering their gauntlet of a schedule coming up with games played on Saturday vs. the Texans and then Wednesday at the Pittsburgh Steelers.Jeff Fedotin, Forbes, 17 Dec. 2024
Noun
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Yeager was one of the best defensive catchers in history who had the misfortune of being a direct contemporary of the best defensive catcher in history, Johnny Bench.Houston Mitchell, Los Angeles Times, 13 Jan. 2025
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Even as the misfortune mounts, the 13-2 Lions are road favorites against the 6-9 San Francisco 49ers, who have endured a harrowing injury streak of their own.Steven Louis Goldstein, The Athletic, 30 Dec. 2024
Noun
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Economic privation could further encourage violent competition between Syrian armed groups over territory and revenues.Sam Heller, Foreign Affairs, 16 Dec. 2024
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But envisioning the privation that followed, with Panguna shut down, requires little imagination.Sean Williams, Harper's Magazine, 23 Sep. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near vicissitude
Cite this Entry
“Vicissitude.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/vicissitude. Accessed 22 Jan. 2025.
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