as in decomposition
the process by which dead organic matter separates into simpler substances
the ghastly festering of the corpses abandoned on the battlefield
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in rotting
to go through decomposition
a week after the battle the corpses of the fallen were still festering in the fields
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in bleeding
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Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of festering
Popular Mechanics, 14 Apr. 2023
For the moment at least, embassies remain open in both capitals despite a festering but unrelated diplomatic spat that has seen the two sides expel dozens of diplomats since 2017.
—chicagotribune.com, 3 Mar. 2022
Michelle Goldberg, Mercury News, 6 Sep. 2025
Instead, what has become a festering problem for the Los Angeles Dodgers right fielder came up yet again.
—Fabian Ardaya, New York Times, 19 Aug. 2025
Is corruption festering in the apparently homogeneous suburb?
—Richard Brody, New Yorker, 8 Aug. 2025
Elizabeth Wolfe, CNN Money, 12 Oct. 2025
There have been problems festering — especially with a lackluster, inefficient offense.
—Zach Berman, New York Times, 10 Oct. 2025
Clearly, Borden’s been festering in the twisted mind of Ryan Murphy for a long time.
—Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 9 Oct. 2025
But for many in the Jewish community the attack, which also left three people injured, was the culmination of something that had been festering for some time.
—Alex Holmes, NBC news, 3 Oct. 2025
Now a Congressman, state officials, and families are demanding accountability and bringing legal actions, saying that Roblox has allowed its platform to become a festering hub for horrific child exploitation.
—Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 25 Aug. 2025
As buyers remained wary of sky-high prices, unbudging mortgage rates and festering economic uncertainty, the typical home sold last month spent 43 days on the market—the longest span for any July since 2015—before buyer and seller closed a deal on it, according to the real estate brokerage Redfin.
—Giulia Carbonaro, MSNBC Newsweek, 19 Aug. 2025
Cortez Masto’s clash with Booker during Police Week offered a rare public window into those festering strategic disputes.
—Burgess Everett, semafor.com, 7 Aug. 2025
Noun
Adding to the festering sense of uncertainty about the enterprise is the principal characters’ embrace of the supernatural.
—Popular Mechanics, 14 Apr. 2023
For the moment at least, embassies remain open in both capitals despite a festering but unrelated diplomatic spat that has seen the two sides expel dozens of diplomats since 2017.
—chicagotribune.com, 3 Mar. 2022
Verb
Either there will be sunlight or a scandal that keeps festering.
—Michelle Goldberg, Mercury News, 6 Sep. 2025
Instead, what has become a festering problem for the Los Angeles Dodgers right fielder came up yet again.
—Fabian Ardaya, New York Times, 19 Aug. 2025
Is corruption festering in the apparently homogeneous suburb?
—Richard Brody, New Yorker, 8 Aug. 2025
Adjective
The sensational turn in the case fueled breathless news coverage as the public became hungry for any revelation about the brothers’ motives or the dark secrets that had been festering inside the Menendez family home.
—Elizabeth Wolfe, CNN Money, 12 Oct. 2025
There have been problems festering — especially with a lackluster, inefficient offense.
—Zach Berman, New York Times, 10 Oct. 2025
Clearly, Borden’s been festering in the twisted mind of Ryan Murphy for a long time.
—Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 9 Oct. 2025
But for many in the Jewish community the attack, which also left three people injured, was the culmination of something that had been festering for some time.
—Alex Holmes, NBC news, 3 Oct. 2025
Now a Congressman, state officials, and families are demanding accountability and bringing legal actions, saying that Roblox has allowed its platform to become a festering hub for horrific child exploitation.
—Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 25 Aug. 2025
As buyers remained wary of sky-high prices, unbudging mortgage rates and festering economic uncertainty, the typical home sold last month spent 43 days on the market—the longest span for any July since 2015—before buyer and seller closed a deal on it, according to the real estate brokerage Redfin.
—Giulia Carbonaro, MSNBC Newsweek, 19 Aug. 2025
Cortez Masto’s clash with Booker during Police Week offered a rare public window into those festering strategic disputes.
—Burgess Everett, semafor.com, 7 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for festering
Noun
-
Maritime rescue officials recovered the remains, which were in an advanced state of decomposition, and transported them to the port of Ibiza, the newspaper reported.—
Bailey Richards,
PEOPLE,
11 Oct. 2025
-
Eventually, the natural fungal spores will colonize, and decomposition will begin.—
Mary Marlowe Leverette,
Southern Living,
4 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Letting the soil dry out some between waterings keeps the roots from rotting in excess moisture.—
Karen Brewer Grossman,
Southern Living,
12 Oct. 2025
-
Also ideal for a vegetable garden and other flowers, each metal bed has an open base that prevents water accumulation and protects a plant’s root system from rotting.—
Stephanie Osmanski,
Better Homes & Gardens,
7 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Produced by the slow decay of radioactive particles, which is a natural process that occurs in all rocks, geothermal energy was long considered too expensive and geographically constrained to compete with other renewables.—
Georgina Jedikovska,
Interesting Engineering,
10 Oct. 2025
-
Linda didn’t truly solve any of those problems — not her child’s illness, not her client’s own motherhood panic, not her ceiling’s decay.—
Matthew Jacobs,
Vulture,
10 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Directors of a Texas funeral home are accused of neglecting bodies found decomposing in their mortuary without working air conditioning, authorities say.—
Mike Stunson,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
14 Oct. 2025
-
Mushrooms also thrive in decomposing wood mulch.—
Brandee Gruener,
Southern Living,
5 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Please tell me the sequel could answer the most burning question of the ’00s: How could Austin not recognize Sam in that mask?—
Stephanie McNeal,
Glamour,
13 Aug. 2025
-
Cooper, 30, asked Hargitay one more burning question about the actors' on-screen alter egos: will Olivia and Elliot ever end up together?—
Victoria Edel,
People.com,
26 June 2025
Noun
-
Shortly after, an unusual rot begins to affect the farm and its inhabitants.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
14 Oct. 2025
-
What begins as a search for a killer becomes a fight to uncover the rot beneath the town’s quiet surface.—
Leo Barraclough,
Variety,
6 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Filth Flies Little filth flies such as drain flies breed in sludge and decaying matter that can build up in drain pipes, says Oi.—
Arricca Elin SanSone,
Southern Living,
10 Oct. 2025
-
For the study, Ruotsalainen measured the Q values of two double-beta decaying and one beta-decaying nucleus.—
Georgina Jedikovska,
Interesting Engineering,
8 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
No big credit red flags, though corporate credit spreads are up off their lows in recent weeks and the nagging questions about a couple of private-debt blowups are on repeat.—
Michael Santoli,
CNBC,
14 Oct. 2025
-
But even as the house buzzed with happiness, Shannel was battling a nagging headache.—
Jordan Greene,
PEOPLE,
14 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Festering.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/festering. Accessed 17 Oct. 2025.
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