ill
Usage
What are other ways to say ill?
The adjective ill is more mild than evil or wicked, and it appears mainly in certain fixed expressions: ill will; ill-natured. Evil applies to that which violates or leads to the violation of moral law: evil practices. Wicked implies willful and determined doing of what is very wrong: a wicked plan. Bad is the broadest and simplest term: a bad man; bad habits.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.
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The FDA made recommendations, including that Taylor improve hand-washing procedures and encourage ill employees to submit stool samples for analysis to help determine the region’s risk for cyclospora.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 18, 2026
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 1,600 people fell ill after eating at Taco Bell; we know of at least 141 who have been hospitalized.
From Slate ● Jul. 17, 2026
Sometimes she works with family members of someone who is ill, who she said are mostly looking to muster resources and handle what’s in front of them.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 17, 2026
The actor died peacefully Thursday evening in Dublin after a “period of ill health,” he said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 17, 2026
These personal attacks devastated Rachel Jackson, and she soon became seriously ill.
From "In the Shadow of Liberty" by Kenneth C. Davis
As Dan Kois illustrates in this ode to kicking back with friends, spending unstructured time together is a blessedly simple cure to the ills of modern life.
From Slate ● Jul. 10, 2026
The Swiss are largely well-governed, and the country’s appeal is understandable to people who want to escape the tax rates and other ills that are common elsewhere in Europe.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 14, 2026
The closest he came, perhaps, was an oblique reference to the need to "support victims of some of the ills that, so tragically, exist in both our societies today",
From BBC ● Apr. 28, 2026
In their absence, the three remaining candidates pounded on a wide array of municipal ills, including broken sidewalks, high rents and sluggish housing production.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 6, 2026
The editorialists suggested John Kwang, among others, as someone who could bring a fresh face to confront the city’s ills, a politician who could better understand the needs of the rapidly changing populace.
From "Native Speaker" by Chang-rae Lee
"If you have a generally iller population, that's not good for the residents, it's not good for productivity, it's not good for the economy.'"
From BBC ● May 25, 2023
This gave him an unnatural appearance and made him look iller than ever.
From The New Yorker ● Dec. 30, 2019
He got iller and iller and iller, and of course he died in the beginning of 2015 when some of the other things had started appearing in the press.
From BBC ● Nov. 23, 2016
Last year began with my being ill, kept on with my being iller, then I was unwell, followed by being poorly with a tiny interlude of infirmity.
From The Guardian ● Aug. 15, 2012
‘You’re sorry that we are not any iller, aren’t you, Dr. Hurst?’ she remarked.
From The Youngest Girl in the School by Sharp, Evelyn
The Black neighborhoods like Baldwin Hills Estates, Ladera Heights and View Park all sit hillside with some of the illest views in the city.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 13, 2026
His wife was told she should prepare for the worst, with staff describing her husband as "one of the illest people they'd ever seen".
From BBC ● May 21, 2024
Rapper Travis Scott told his nearly 12 million followers on X, the site formerly known as Twitter, that Monday “might be one for the illest days in women’s sports historyyyyyyy.”
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 2, 2024
It’s one of the illest, if not the illest Caribbean food spots in the city.
From Washington Post ● Aug. 22, 2022
Not knowing is worse than the very illest news.
From Grey Town An Australian Story by Baldwin, Gerald
"This is worse than a Jackie Weaver moment and the council is lucky the whole ordeal was not live-streamed," he said.
From BBC ● Jul. 16, 2026
But some gauges of momentum-stock performance were doing much worse.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 16, 2026
Even worse air enveloped the central and western regions of the state.
From Barron's ● Jul. 16, 2026
Matters got worse after passersby with guns pinged holes in some of the barrels, and the poisonous stuff soaked about 15 feet down into the desert soil.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 15, 2026
“I’ve been spoken to far worse than that in my life, trust me.”
From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith
Farmers are also feeling the pinch of higher diesel prices, and the worst may be yet to come.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 18, 2026
Artle said the broken pipe unleashed the worst damage he’s seen in the 25 years he’s lived in the building.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 18, 2026
One of the biggest shocks to Wall Street this week was IBM’s AI profit warning, which triggered a 25% plunge in its shares—the worst in the company’s history.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026
"It's really difficult and I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy," Davies said.
From BBC ● Jul. 16, 2026
Certainly, I thought, running without a head lamp would not be the worst thing I had ever done.
From "Woodsong" by Gary Paulsen
