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

Presidential elections are scheduled for next year, amid speculation that the ailing Ortega is preparing a dynastic succession.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 21, 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

Instead of a caregiving crisis bringing families together out of shared love for an ailing parent, it’s tearing many of them apart.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 30, 2026

It is the latest bad news from Germany's ailing auto sector, and a major blow for a manufacturer which had so far endured industry upheaval better than its peers Volkswagen and Mercedes-Benz.

From Barron's ● Jun. 16, 2026

Paler indeed than the moon ailing in some slow eclipse was the light of it now, wavering and blowing like a noisome exhalation of decay, a corpse-light, a light that illuminated nothing.

From "The Two Towers" by J. R. R. Tolkien

Related Words

• diseased
• feeble
• ill
• sickly
• weak