sicken

American  

[sik-uhn] / ˈsɪk ən /

verb (used with or without object)

1. to make or become sick.

2. to cause or experience disgust, outrage, or loathing.

   Synonyms:

   upset, outrage, disgust, revolt, repulse

---

sicken British  

/ ˈsɪkən /

verb

1. to make or become sick, nauseated, or disgusted

2. to show symptoms (of an illness)

---

Other Word Forms

• resicken
  verb
• unsickened
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of sicken

1150–1200; Middle English seknen, sicnen; cognate with Old Norse sjūkna. See sick ¹, -en ¹

Explanation

Things that sicken you make you feel upset or ill. It might sicken you to realize that you've hit a squirrel with your car. When things sicken you, they either make you feel terrible — disgusted or horrified — or they make you physically sick. Eating a piece of moldy bread or some potato salad that's been sitting in the sun too long will probably sicken you. Reading a story about childhood hunger and poverty in the newspaper can also sicken you. The earliest meaning of sicken was "fall ill," from an Old English root, seoc, "ill, diseased, weak, or troubled."

Example Sentences

Shall old faiths falter and Antonio's heart Sicken the while he churns, and chilly ruminate, "This is no longer Art"?

From Punch, or the London Charivari, Vol. 147, July 15, 1914 by Various

Related Words

• affect
• afflict
• disgust
• nauseate
• offend
• repel
• repulse