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
1
Frequently ill, or generally weak and unhealthy.
"As a child he was sickly and missed a lot of school."
2
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."
3
Dim or weak, describing light or colour.
"A sickly yellow glow came from the old streetlamp."
How to use sickly
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishWeak and prone to illness, or unpleasantly over-sweet or faint.
Common pairings
sickly child
sickly sweet
sickly pallor
Vocabulary Flow
Build your vocabulary from words like sickly.
Vocabulary Flow serves the next word, and the next — meaning, pronunciation and an example each time. Practice at your level, or learn English in your own language.
Start vocabulary practice
Word forms
- Third person singular
- sicklies
- Past tense
- sicklied
- Comparative
- sicklier, more sickly
- Superlative
- sickliest, most sickly
Fill the gap
Can you complete this real example?
As a child he was _____ and missed a lot of school.
Etymology
From Middle English sekely, built from "sick" plus "-ly".
Synonyms
View more →Antonyms
Related words
Rhymes for sickly
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.
