Showing results for "ailing"

• present participle of ail.

ailing

American  

[ey-ling] / ˈeɪ lɪŋ /

adjective

1. sickly; unwell.

2. unsound or troubled.

   a financially ailing corporation.

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ailing British  

/ ˈeɪlɪŋ /

adjective

1. unwell or unsuccessful

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Etymology

Origin of ailing

First recorded in 1590–1600; ail + -ing ²

Explanation

Someone who's ailing is sick. You might visit your ailing grandmother in the hospital. You can use the adjective ailing to describe someone who's very ill, or use it figuratively, to talk about "our ailing economy," or "the ailing school system." The next time you call in sick to work, you might say, "I can't come in today — I'm afraid I'm ailing." Ailing comes from the verb ail, "trouble or afflict," from the Old English eglan, "to trouble, plague, or pain."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

ailing

Healthcare provider Kaiser Permanente said it will give ailing Martin Luther King Jr. Community Hospital a $25-million grant to help expand its overcrowded emergency department.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026

An ailing fund managed by KKR lost 6.55% over the past 12 months through June, a slight improvement from its 9.17% loss in the prior period.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 2026

Similarly, Likho, a one-eyed Russian Blue, also was ailing when Kobilha took him in at 8 years old, but she wanted him anyhow.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 17, 2026

With the Japanese yen reaching a 40-year low on Tuesday, investors are eyeing when the country’s authorities may stage an intervention to bolster its ailing currency.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 30, 2026

Or like a mule had et something bad and was ailing and leaking sickness, but it was kind of akin to that.

From "Elijah of Buxton" by Christopher Paul Curtis

Related Words

• diseased
• feeble
• ill
• sickly
• weak