afflict
verb (used with object)
to distress with mental or bodily pain; trouble greatly or grievously.
was afflicting
-
past progressiveof afflict.past progressive
Used to describe an ongoing action or continuous state that was happening at a specific time in the past.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Sudden deaths, grievous misfortune and other inexplicable events gave rise to speculation that an evil spell was afflicting any who had dared defile the pharaoh’s final resting place.
From Washington Post ● Nov. 4, 2022
It's hard to know what was afflicting the president's top economic adviser, but something was.
From Salon ● Jun. 11, 2018
Early in the episode, House and his team would sit around a table kicking around the details of whatever mysterious ailment was afflicting their latest patient.
From Slate ● Apr. 18, 2018
And while she had little interest in the domestic aspects of womanhood—the drudgery that was afflicting American women with Betty Friedan’s “problem with no name”—she exalted her own vision of the feminine mystique.
From The New Yorker ● Apr. 18, 2016
Any fears I had that some deeper trouble was afflicting the Ford were laid to rest when I tried the ignition and heard the engine come to life with a healthy murmur.
From "The Remains of the Day" by Kazuo Ishiguro
