adj

sickly

SIHK-lee

Sickly (adj) means Frequently ill, or generally weak and unhealthy. Example: “As a child he was sickly and missed a lot of school.”

adj

Frequently ill, or generally weak and unhealthy.

"As a child he was sickly and missed a lot of school."

Producing a slight feeling of nausea, especially through excessive sweetness.

"The cake had a sickly, over-sweet icing."

"A sickly smell of rotting fruit hung in the kitchen."

Dim or weak, describing light or colour.

"A sickly yellow glow came from the old streetlamp."

How to Use Sickly

Learner’s notes

In plain EnglishWeak and prone to illness, or unpleasantly over-sweet or faint.

Common pairings

sickly child sickly sweet sickly pallor

Word Forms

sicklier comparative, more sickly comparative, sicklied past tense, sicklies singular, sickliest superlative, most sickly superlative

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As a child he was _____ and missed a lot of school.

Etymology

From Middle English sekely, built from "sick" plus "-ly".

Origin: Middle English

Rhymes for sickly

quickly prickly

See all rhymes for sickly →

Frequently Asked Questions

What does “sickly” mean?

The word “sickly” means frequently ill, or generally weak and unhealthy. In plain terms, weak and prone to illness, or unpleasantly over-sweet or faint.

How do you pronounce “sickly”?

“Sickly” is pronounced SIHK-lee (/ˈsɪkli/ in IPA).

How do you use “sickly” in a sentence?

Here is “sickly” used in a sentence: “As a child he was sickly and missed a lot of school.”

What part of speech is “sickly”?

“Sickly” is an adjective.

Where does the word “sickly” come from?

The word “sickly” comes from Middle English. From Middle English sekely, built from "sick" plus "-ly".

How many meanings does “sickly” have?

“Sickly” has 3 distinct senses listed in this dictionary. The most common is: frequently ill, or generally weak and unhealthy.