sickly

[ sik-lee ]
See synonyms for: sicklysickliness on Thesaurus.com

adjective,sick·li·er, sick·li·est.
  1. not strong; unhealthy; ailing.

  2. of, connected with, or arising from ill health: a sickly complexion.

  1. marked by the prevalence of ill health, as a region: the epidemic left the town sickly.

  2. causing sickness.

  3. maudlin and insipid; mawkish: sickly sentimentality.

  4. faint or feeble, as light or color.

adverb
  1. in a sick or sickly manner.

verb (used with object),sick·lied, sick·ly·ing.
  1. to cover with a sickly hue.

Origin of sickly

1
1300–50; Middle English siklich, sekly (adj.). See sick1, -ly

Other words for sickly

Other words from sickly

  • sick·li·ness, noun

Words Nearby sickly

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use sickly in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for sickly

sickly

/ (ˈsɪklɪ) /


adjective-lier or -liest
  1. disposed to frequent ailments; not healthy; weak

  2. of, relating to, or caused by sickness

  1. (of a smell, taste, etc) causing revulsion or nausea

  2. (of light or colour) faint or feeble

  3. mawkish; insipid: sickly affectation

adverb
  1. in a sick or sickly manner

Derived forms of sickly

  • sickliness, noun

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