fester

American  

[fes-ter] / ˈfɛs tər /

verb (used without object)

festers, present (3rd person singular) festered, past participle, past festering present participle

1. to form pus; generate purulent matter; suppurate.

2. to cause ulceration, as a foreign body in the flesh.

3. to putrefy or rot.

4. to rankle, as a feeling of resentment.

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verb (used with object)

festers, present (3rd person singular) festered, past participle, past festering present participle

1. to cause to rankle.

   Malice festered his spirit.

noun

1. an ulcer; a rankling sore.

2. a small, purulent, superficial sore.

fester British  

/ ˈfɛstə /

verb

1. to form or cause to form pus

2. (intr) to become rotten; decay

3. to become or cause to become bitter, irritated, etc, esp over a long period of time; rankle

   resentment festered his imagination

4. informal (intr) to be idle or inactive

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noun

1. a small ulcer or sore containing pus

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• unfestering
  adjective
• unfestered
  adjective

Conjugated Forms

Present

• has festered
  perfect 3rd person singular
• have festered
  perfect
• has been festering
  perfect progressive 3rd person singular
• am festering
  progressive 1st person singular
• is festering
  progressive 3rd person singular
• are festering
  progressive
• have been festering
  perfect progressive
• festers
  singular 3rd person
• festering
  participle

Past

• had festered
  perfect
• were festering
  progressive plural
• was festering
  progressive singular
• festered
  simple
• festered
  participle
• had been festering
  perfect progressive

Future

• will fester
  simple
• will have festered
  perfect
• will be festering
  progressive
• will have been festering
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of fester

1350–1400; (noun) Middle English festir, festre < Anglo-French, Old French festre < Latin fistula fistula (for -l- > -r- cf. chapter); (v.) Middle English festryn, derivative of the noun or < Old French festrir

Explanation

To fester is to grow and spread, not in a good way. When a cut gets infected it starts to fester and smell bad. Emotional wounds stink too, like when you hold on to anger or pain until it starts to fester and explodes. Fester is a verb describing what happens to a wound or a sore that gets worse and has liquid, or pus, oozing out. Infections cause cuts, broken bones, and diseases to fester. Dead bodies can fester too — as they decompose. Things that fester have a decaying odor, and bad feelings can have a decaying effect on friendships and the heart. Letting bitter emotions fester often leads to their getting worse.

Example Sentences

In the San Fernando Valley case, Internal Affairs investigators reported turning up an “overwhelming pattern of intentional policy violations” by the officers involved, and said poor management allowed a “rampant culture of misconduct” to fester.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 4, 2026

Sweeping contentious issues under the rug and relegating them to wanton aggravation is one major way of letting these same topics fester.

From Salon • Apr. 3, 2026

The Jewish community has warned time and again that when hatred is allowed to fester, when it is excused, normalized or mainstreamed, it inevitably leads to violence.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 18, 2025

For Congolese former deputy Enoch Ruberangabo, who comes from an ethnic Tutsi community in the restive east, Mobutu was a leader who "allowed community tensions to fester".

From Barron's • Nov. 13, 2025

She could never be free of the fester.

From "Strange the Dreamer" by Laini Taylor

Related Words

• smolder