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sickening

sickening

50 5.1
That causes a strong feeling of wanting to vomit or of disgust
  • adjective
  • /ˈsɪkənɪŋ/
translation icon : repugnante
  • The sickening smell of rotten eggs made everyone feel nauseous.

I just want to state that not only is this a sickening tweet, it is in no way true.

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Examples

  • As the teacher explained the right answer, a sickening feeling of irredeemable humiliation sank into me.

    Fiction book (1990)
  • This morning we have seen a sickening attempt to destroy those freedoms and to break those bonds of citizenship that define our United Kingdom.

  • I felt my own heart drop to my feet in a kind of long, sickening fall.

    Fiction book (1997)
  • To identify the body of someone you know is a sickening experience.

    Fiction book (1994)
  • That retirement, the way I felt the last two years and and how it all ended up was sickening to me.

  • I felt in that moment a sickening knowledge that I really would someday die.

    Fiction book (1993)
  • Every Shark fan has a sickening feeling in his stomach.

  • That was the most sickening display I've ever seen.

  • When he thought of the civilized people inside that home, his stomach twisted in a sickening knot.

    Fiction book (1994)
  • Suddenly, visions of last year's Apache raid flashed through her mind, leaving a sickening feeling in her stomach.

    Fiction book (1995)

Synonyms

disgusting
vssickening
531 1.3

Causing a strong feeling of dislike or making you feel sick

is specifically about causing nausea and physical sick feelings
nasty
vssickening
282 1.0

Very dirty and covered with things that smell bad

emphasizes nausea and revolting feeling more than messiness
gross
vssickening
  • Informal
280 2.3

Very unpleasant and making you feel sick or disgusted

focuses specifically on causing nausea or revulsion rather than dirtiness
vile
vssickening
157 5.0

Very bad and morally wrong

expresses bodily sickness and nausea more than moral badness
appalling
vssickening
87 5.6

Causing shock and strong disgust because it is very bad

is narrower meaning it makes someone physically sick or revolted
repulsive
vssickening
59 5.5

Causing strong dislike or disgust, like a very bad smell

is more about causing physical sickness rather than just strong dislike
queasy
vssickening
30 4.1

Feeling sick and likely to throw up

is about causing intense nausea rather than mild sickness
distasteful
vssickening
30 4.6

Something that makes people feel dislike or disgust

signals strong nausea and bodily revulsion instead of mild offence
abhorrent
vssickening
23 7.7

Causing strong dislike or disgust because people see it as morally wrong

is centered on physical nausea rather than moral offence
nauseating
vssickening
14 5.1

Making people feel sick or want to throw up

is stronger in causing nausea and physical revulsion
revolting
vssickening
6 4.9

Very unpleasant and likely to make you feel disgusted

stresses producing a sick bodily reaction rather than only aversion
nauseous
vssickening
3 4.4

A smell or taste that makes you feel sick

focuses on causing nausea rather than only disgust
noisome
vssickening
1 9.9

A very strong, unpleasant smell that can make you ill

focuses on creating nausea and sick feelings not only bad smell
vomitous
vssickening
1 8.7

Very disgusting and likely to make someone want to throw up

is defined more by general nausea and strong revulsion
disgustful
vssickening
6.7

Causing a strong feeling of dislike or making people feel sick

leans more toward physical nausea and bodily sickness

Antonyms

314 1.0

Giving a gentle feeling of enjoyment

138 2.3

Makes people like it, for example a friendly smile or a new idea

How Disgusting

revolting
6 4.9
sickening
50 5.1
unpleasant
215 1.0

Surface Forms

sickening positive
sickener comparative
sickeningest superlative

Morphology

sickening = sicken (transparent) = sick + en + ing

The form is built from 'sick' -> 'sicken' (with productive suffix -en) -> 'sickening' (-ing), and the meaning 'causing nausea or disgust' follows directly.

Etymology

The word sickening comes from the simple word sick, which means 'ill', plus the parts -en and -ing that turn it into 'making' or 'causing'. So something sickening is literally 'making you ill' or 'making you feel very disgusted', which explains its modern meaning.