as in to afflict
to cause persistent suffering to
plagued by a cough for all of last week
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in epidemic
a widespread disease resulting in a high rate of death
the Black Death was a plague that killed about one third of Europe's population in the Middle Ages
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Recent Examples of plague
Spencer Kimball, CNBC, 25 Feb. 2025
The decision puts 500,000 people at risk of being sent back to a country plagued by political instability and gang violence.
—Mark Joseph, Newsweek, 24 Feb. 2025
Sarah Holzmann, Smithsonian Magazine, 7 Feb. 2025
In one example, the plague begins to spread around the world toward the end of Exploration.
—Ars Technica, 3 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for plague
Verb
Holtec’s design aims to reduce the capital costs and long construction timelines that have plagued large nuclear projects.
—Spencer Kimball, CNBC, 25 Feb. 2025
The decision puts 500,000 people at risk of being sent back to a country plagued by political instability and gang violence.
—Mark Joseph, Newsweek, 24 Feb. 2025
Noun
He was even accused of planting plague on cadavers throughout San Francisco.
—Sarah Holzmann, Smithsonian Magazine, 7 Feb. 2025
In one example, the plague begins to spread around the world toward the end of Exploration.
—Ars Technica, 3 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for plague
Recent Examples of Synonyms for plague
Verb
-
Egg prices have jumped to all-time highs due in part to an outbreak of avian flu, or bird flu, that has been afflicting egg-laying hens in the US since 2022.—
Jennifer Hauser,
CNN,
28 Feb. 2025
-
This, in turn, led to waves of protest and a series of arsons that afflicted 24 churches over the next two years.—
The Editors,
National Review,
28 Feb. 2025
Noun
-
The fentanyl epidemic is the deadliest in U.S. history.—
Mary Beth Sheridan The Washington Post,
arkansasonline.com,
2 Mar. 2025
-
In 2023, the U.S. Surgeon General released an advisory about the epidemic of loneliness and isolation, citing evidence of the impact of technology and social media on social connection.—
Taylor Grothe,
Parents,
1 Mar. 2025
Verb
-
Rwanda has claimed the Tutsis are being persecuted by Hutus and former militias responsible for the 1994 genocide of 800,000 Tutsis and others in Rwanda.—
CHINEDU ASADU,
arkansasonline.com,
17 Feb. 2025
-
Miller wrote the play as an allegory for McCarthyism, when the U.S. government persecuted people of being communists.—
Contributed Content,
Twin Cities,
7 Feb. 2025
Noun
-
Being omnivorous, with a very long and efficient gut, humans coped better than other mammals in the face of pestilence and drought, the better to ensure our survival.—
John Mariani,
Forbes,
27 Dec. 2024
-
Disease, pestilence and death: Has unsealing King Tut's tomb unleashed an ancient curse? Fox Nation's 'Tales of Terror: The Curse of King Tut' unravels the media frenzy after the uncovering of the Egyptian pharaoh's ancient tomb and the devastation that followed.—
Ashlyn Messier,
Fox News,
4 Dec. 2024
Verb
-
Caro Quintero and others then allegedly sought revenge, kidnapping Salazar and torturing him, before killing him.—
Dan Perry,
Newsweek,
28 Feb. 2025
-
Rami’s unhappy family splinters over love and politics; an opponent of both the monarchy and Saddam Hussein in the 1950s and 1960s, Rami is imprisoned and tortured, eventually escaping to gain asylum in France.—
Lisa Anderson,
Foreign Affairs,
25 Feb. 2025
Noun
-
The answer is critical, especially amid winter respiratory illness season, as the flu, COVID-19 and common colds circulate.—
Eduardo Cuevas,
USA TODAY,
27 Feb. 2025
-
The pair developed a close friendship which eventually evolved into a relationship that turned tragic when Xander stepped up to take care of Dawn through a degenerative spiritual illness.—
Ryan Coleman,
EW.com,
26 Feb. 2025
Verb
-
Consumers are besieged nearly every day about some news about Elon Musk’s latest moves at the Department of Government Efficiency to gain access to government records that contain sensitive personal data, including Social Security numbers.—
Susan Tompor,
USA TODAY,
1 Mar. 2025
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The series, which also stars Kiowa Gordon, Jessica Matten and Deanna Allison, follows Lt. Joe Leaphorn (McClarnon), Jim Chee (Gordon) and Bernadette Manuelito (Matten) of the Navajo Tribal Police solving mysteries on their reservation as it is besieged by increasingly violent crimes in the 1970s.—
Peter White,
Deadline,
24 Feb. 2025
Noun
-
Wash dust and pests from indoor plant foliage with a mild soapy solution. 83.—
Tom MacCubbin,
Orlando Sentinel,
1 Mar. 2025
-
But in the 1900s, extermination programs bankrolled by the US and state governments started killing off prairie dogs, which were viewed as pests that competed with cattle for forage.—
Benji Jones,
Vox,
26 Feb. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Plague.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/plague. Accessed 12 Mar. 2025.
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