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pestilent

[ pes-tl-uhnt ]
/ ˈpɛs tl ənt /
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See synonyms for pestilent on Thesaurus.com
adjective
producing or tending to produce infectious or contagious, often epidemic, disease; pestilential.
destructive to life; deadly; poisonous.
injurious to peace, morals, etc.; pernicious.
troublesome, annoying, or mischievous.
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Origin of pestilent

1350–1400; Middle English <Latin pestilent- (stem of pestilēns) unhealthy, noxious, alteration of pestilentus, equivalent to pesti- (stem of pestis) pest + -lentus-lent

OTHER WORDS FROM pestilent

Words nearby pestilent

pesthole, pesthouse, pesticide, pestiferous, pestilence, pestilent, pestilential, pestle, pesto, pesty, pet
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Words related to pestilent

baneful, contagious, contaminating, corrupting, deadly, deleterious, destructive, detrimental, diseased, evil, fatal, harmful, infectious, injurious, lethal, mortal, noxious, pernicious, pestiferous, pestilential

How to use pestilent in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for pestilent

pestilent
/ (ˈpɛstɪlənt) /
adjective
annoying; irritating
highly destructive morally or physically; pernicious
infected with or likely to cause epidemic or infectious disease

Derived forms of pestilent

pestilently, adverb

Word Origin for pestilent

C15: from Latin pestilens unwholesome, from pestis plague
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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